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Full text of "Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form"

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Mississippi 

Dunbar  Rowland 


LIBRARY   OF  THE 
UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 


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MISSISSIPPI 


Comprising  Sketches  of  Coiinties,  Towns,  Events, 

Institutions,  and  Persons,   Arranged  in 

Cyclopedic   Form 


PLANNED  AND  -EDITED  BY 

DUNBAR  ROWLAND,  LL.  D. 

DIRECTOR,    MISSISSIPPI  DEPARTlbAbn*  OF  ARCHIVES  AND   HISTORY;     MEMBER, 
AMERICAN   HISTORICAL  ASSOCIATION 


IN  THREE  VOLUMESj 


VOL.    II 


\   ^')    K^^'y 


ATLANTA 
Southern  Historical  Publishing  Association 

1907 


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335 


(tCHT,  1907, 
By 
THE  SOUTHERN  HISTORICAL  PUBLISHING 
ASSOCIATION 


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MISSISSIPPI 


Labauve,  Felix,  was  born  at  Vanziers,  France,  Nov.  16,  1809. 
His  father  died  when  he  was  a  child,  and  he  was  sent  by  his 
mother,  who  was  poor,  to  her  brothers  at  Camden,  S.  C,  to  be 
reared  by  them.  He  became  a  clerk  in  their  store;  came  to  Mis- 
sissippi in  1835;  carried  on  a  mercantile  business  among  the  In- 
dians in  DeSoto  county;  moved  to  Hernando  in  1838;  became  a 
lawyer  and  an  ardent  Democrat;  was  one  of  the  editors  of  the 
Phoenix  in  1841-42;  was  elected  to  the  legislature  in  1843  and  to 
the  State  senate  in  1845.  He  served  as  a  county  official  for  two 
years ;  was  an  ardent  secessionist ;  and  while  too  old  to  be  a  regu- 
lar soldier,  was  in  the  Confederate  service  paf-t  of  the  time.  On 
one  occasion  he  captured,  single  handed,  four  of  the  enemy.  He 
served  in  the  legislature  in  1866,  and  was  the  State  commissioner 
to  the  Paris  exposition  in  1877.  He  never  married  and  when  he 
died,  at  an  advanced  age,  his  will  gave  $5,000  to  Miss  Bertha  Pon- 
sin,  of  France,  his  only  relative  living;  generously  remembered  a 
number  of  widows ;  g^ve  some  property  for  the  building  of  a 
Catholic  church;  and  gave  the  rest  of  his  estate  for  the  creation 
of  scholarships  in  the  University  of  Mississippi  to  bear  his  name. 

Ladner,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Pearl  River 
county,  situated  on  the  Wolf  river,  about  15  miles  distant  from 
Poplarville,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  50. 

Lafayette  County  was  established  February  9,  1836,  and  was 
named  in  honor  of  the  distinguished  friend  of  the  American  Re- 
public, the  Marquis  de  Lafayette.  It  is  one  of  the  dozen  counties 
carved  from  the  Chickasaw  Indian  lands  in  northern  Mississippi 
during  that  year,  after  the  Chickasaws,  in  1832,  had  surrendered  all 
their  remaining  lands  by  the  Treaty  of  Pontotoc.  The  original  act 
defines  its  boundaries  as  follows:  "Beginning  at  the  point  where 
the  line  between  townships  11  and  12  intersects  the  basis  meridian, 
to  the  center  of  township  6;  thence  west,  through  the  center  of 
township  6,  according  to  the  sectional  lines,  to  the  center  of  range 
5  west ;  thfence  south,  through  the  center  of  range  5  west,  according 
to  the  sectional  lines,  to  the  northern  boundary  line  of  Yalobusha 
county,  to  the  point  where  the  line  between  townships  11  and  12 
intersects  the  eastern  boundary  line  of  Yalobusha  county,  and 
thence  east  with  the  said  township  line  to  the  beginning."  (See 
Marshall  county  for  present  boundary  between  Lafayette  and 
2-II  17 


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18  MISSISSIPPI 

Marshall.)  The  total  area  is  about  673  square  miles.  Two  of  the 
earliest  settlements  in  the  county  were  at  Eaton  and  Wyatt — both 
of  which  are  now  extinct.  Eaton  was  about  fifteen  miles  west  of 
the  present  town  of  Oxford,  on  the  Tallahatchie  river,  where  there 
was  a  ferry  enabling  the  settlers  of  parts  of  Panola  and  I^afayette 
counties  to  cross  the  river,  on  their  way  to  and  from  Oxford.  The 
panic  of  1837  destroyed  the  incipient  town.  Dr.  Corbin  was  a 
prominent  planter  of  the  neighborhood  in  the  early  30's.  Wyatt 
was  located  about  13  miles  from  Oxford,  on  the  supposed  head  of 
navigation  of  the  Tallahatchie  river.  It  was  first  settled  about  the 
time  of  the  Chickasaw  cession,  and  was  once  the  shipping  point 
for  a  large  section  of  country,  and  boats  plied  between  it  and  New 
Orleans.  The  Brooks  gin,  manufactured  here,  was  widely  used  in 
northern  Mississippi.  Here  dwelt  for  a  time  the  celebrated  Dr. 
Robert  Watt,  called  the  best  physician  in  Northern  Mississippi; 
Thos.  H.  Allen,  A.  Gillis,  Andrew  Peterson,  Maj.  Alston,  Dr.  R.  O. 
Carter  and  Dr.  Edw.  McMucken.  The  town  decayed  rapidly  after 
the  panic  of  1837.  Lafayette  county  *is  bounded  on  the  north  by 
the  county  of  Marshall,  the  Tallahatphie  river  forming  part  of  the 
dividing  line ;  on  the  east,  by  Union  and  Pontotoc  counties ;  on  the 
south  by  Calhoun  and  Yalobusha  counties  and  on  the  west  by 
Panola  county.  The  most  important  town  and  the  county  seat  is 
the  thriving  city  of  Oxford,  built  on  a  beautiful  ridge  near  the 
center  of  the  county.  It  contained  a  population  of  1,825,  in  1900,  an 
increase  of  nearly  300  over  the  census  of  1890 ;  in  1906,  the  popula- 
tion of  Oxford  was  estimated  at  2,000.  It  is  noted  as  the  seat  of  the 
State  University  and  the  home  of  many  families  of  wealth  and 
culture.  It  received  its  name  from  the  English  university  town  of 
the  same  name,  in  anticipation  of  its  subsequent  selection  as  the  seat 
of  the  State's  chief  institution  of  learning.  The  University  was 
located  here  by  Act  of  the  Legislature  in  1840,  and  during  the  last 
ten  years,  has  advanced  materially  in  the  thoroughness  and  scope 
of  its  work,  as  well  as  in  point  of  attendance.  There  was  alsa 
located  in  Oxford  (until  1904),  the  Union  Female  College,  incor- 
porated in  1838  as  the  Oxford  Female  Academy,  and,  in  1854,  re- 
incorporated and  placed  under  the  auspices  of  the  Cumberland 
Presbyterian  church.  This  was  the  second  institution  of  learning 
chartered  within  the  limits  of  the  Chickasaw  cession,  and  ranked 
as  the  oldest  female  school,  in  the  State,  of  unbroken  history.  There 
are  82  white  schools  and  57  colored  schools  in  the  county.  Besides 
Oxford,  the  towns  of  Abbeville,  Taylor  and  Springdale  are  railroad  . 
towns  of  importance.  The  county  is  watered  by  the  Tallahatchie 
and  Yocona  rivers  and  their  numerous  tributaries.  The  Illinois 
Central  R.  R.,  crosses  the  central  part  of  the  county  from  north  to 
south  and  gives  the  region  excellent  transportation  facilities.  The 
prosperous  town  of  Water  Valley,  in  Yalobusha  county,  is  the 
market  and  shipping  point  for  the  southern  part  of  the  county.  The 
general  character  of  the  soil  is  good  and  the  region  produces  cotton, 
com,  oats,  sorghum,  and  all  kinds  of  grasses.  A  good  deal  of 
attention  has  been  paid  to  the  cultivation  of  fruits  and  this  industry 


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MISSISSIPPI  19 

has  been  much  encouraged  by  the  liberal  policy  of  the  Illinois 
Central  Railway  Company.  Apples,  pears,  peaches,  figs  and  small 
fruits  are  raised  and  shipped  to  the  large  northern  markets.  There 
is  a  good  deal  of  valuable  timber  left  in  the  county,  much  of  it 
hardwood,  and  industries  to  utilize  its  g^eat  resources  in  this  respect 
will,  no  doubt,  come  in  time.  Much  attention  is  being  paid  to  stock 
raising,  for  which  the  region  is  well  adapted.  There  is  little  manu- 
facturing done  in  the  county  as  yet  and  its  wealth  lies  in  its  live  / 
stock  and  the  products  of  its  soil.  "" 

The  twelfth  census  for  1900  gives  the  following  statistics  for 
Lafayette  county :  Number  of  farms,  3,871 ;  acres  in  farms,  346,743 ; 
acres  improyed,  127,915;  value  of  the  land  exclusive  of  buildings, 
$1,880,120 ;  value  of  live  stock,  $696,649 ;  value  of  all  products  not 
fed  to  stock,  $1,419,478.  The  number  of  manufacturing  establish- 
ments was  71 ;  capital  invested,  $139,115 ;  wages  paid,  $17,140 ;  cost 
of  materials,  $64,183,  and  total  value  of  products,  $138,662.  The 
population  of  the  county  in  1900,  consisted  of  12,378  whites;  9,732 
colored,  a  total  of  22,110  and  1,557  more  than  in  the  year  1890.  The 
total  population  in  1906,  is  estimated  at  25,000.  The  total  assessed 
valuation  of  real  and  personal  property  in  the  county  in  1905  was 
$2,820,216  and  in  1906  it  was  $3,325,560,  showing  an  increase  during 
the  year  of  $606,344. 

Lafayette  Springs,  an  incorporated  post-town  on  the  eastern  border 
of  Lafayette  county,  about  15  miles  east  of  Oxford,  the  nearest  rail- 
road and  banking  town.  It  has  two  churches  and  an  academy. 
Population  in  1900,  124;  population  in  1906,  estimated  at  200.  The 
town  is  prosperous  and  growing. 

Lafayette's  Visit.  During  the  celebrated  visit  of  Gen.  Lafay- 
ette to  America  in  1824-5,  he  made  a  hurried  tour  of  the  south- 
western States  in  the  spring  of  1825.  His  voyage  up  the  Mississippi 
river  on  the  steamer  Natchez  has  been  minutely  recorded  in  the 
journal  of  his  faithful  secretary,  A.  Levasseur.  Of  his  visit  to 
Natchez,  the  only  town  in  the  State  of  Mississippi  which  he  visited, 
he  has  this  to  say:  "On  Monday,  the  18th  of  April,  some  distant 
discharges  of  cannon,  which  we  heard  at  dawn,  announced  our 
approach  to  a  city.  Some  minutes  afterwards,  the  first  rays  of 
the  sun  gilding  the  shores  of  the  Mississippi,  which,  in  this  place, 
rose  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  water, 
showed  us  the  tops  of  the  houses  in  Natchez.  Our  steamboat 
stopped  a  little  while  previous  to  arriving  opposite  the  town,  and  we 
went  on  shore  at  Bacon's  landing,  where  the  citizens,  with  a  calash 
and  four  horses,  and  an  escort  of  cavalry  and  volunteer  infantry, 
were  waiting  for  the  general.  ...  In  proportion  as  we  advanced, 
the  escort  increased.  It  consisted  of  citizens  on  horseback,  mili- 
tia on  foot,  ladies  in  carriages,  and  nearly  the  whole  population, 
who  came  in  a  crowd  to  see  their  beloved  and  long  expected  guest. 
Two  addresses  were  made  to  the  general ;  one  by  the  president  of 
the  committee  of  arrangement,  on  entering  the  city;  the  other  by 
the  mayor,  on  one  of  the  most  elevated  spots  on  the  banks  of  the 
Mississippi,  within  view  of  the  town  and  the  river,  its  source  of 


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20    •  MISSISSIPPI 

prosperity.  ...  At  the  moment  we  were  preparing  to  enter 
our  hotel,  we  observed  a  long  procession  of  children  of  both  sexes 
a,pproaching  us.  They  were  led  by  Col.  Marshall,  who  requested 
of  the  general  for  them,  permission  to  shake  hands  with  him.  The 
general  willingly  complied.     .     .     . 

"The  inhabitants  of  Natchez  neglected  nothing  which  could 
contribute  to  the  pleasure  of  their  guest  during  the  twenty-four 
hours  he  remained  with  them.  The  public  dinner  concluded  with 
toasts,  To  the  Nation's  Guest— The  Triumph  of  Yorktown — 
France  fighting  for  the  liberty  of  the  world — The  victory  of  New 
Orleans' — in  fact  to  all  glorious  and  patriotic  American  recollec- 
tions." 

On  leaving  Natchez  "the  committee  of  New  Orleans  were  joined 
by  two  gentlemen  from  Natchez,  as  representatives  of  the  state 
of  Mississippi,  near  the  person  of  General  Lafayette." 

La  Grange  was  once  a  thriving  little  town  in  the  northern  part  of 
Choctaw  county,  about  1^^  miles  south  of  the  Big  Black  river.  It 
was  selected  as  the  county  seat  in  1871,  after  Choctaw  county  had 
been  divided  to  assist  in  the  formation  of  Montgomery  county, 
l>ecause  Greensboro,  the  first  county  seat,  was  too  far  from  the 
center  of  the  county,  and  the  court  house  there,  moreover,  had  been 
destroyed  by  fire.  It  was  not,  however,  suffered  to  remain  the 
county  seat  for  long.  Choctaw  county  was  again  divided  in  1874 
by  the  Legislature,  which  was  then  Republican,  to  form  the  new 
county  of  Webster.  Two  months  earlier,  the  court  house  at  La 
Grange  had  been  burned — it  was  rumored  by  incendiaries — who 
favored  a  division  of  the  county  to  create  a  Republican  county  out  of 
part  of  it.  For  these  reasons,  the  county  seat  was  again  moved — this 
time  to  Chester,  and  La  Grange  dwindled  away,  and  is  now  little 
more  than  a  postoffice  site.    Its  population  in  1900,  was  only  39. 

Capt.  J.  B.  Dunn,  F.  A.  Critz,  S.  R.  Boyd,  J.  P.  Mullen,  Capt. 
R.  F.  Holloway,  D.  B.  Archer,  and  J.  W.  Pinson,  lawyers;  Drs. 
A.  R.  Boyd,  and  J.  W.  Robinson,  physicians ;  and  Seward,  Boyd  & 
Co.,  Nolen  &  Bridges,  J.  M.  Petty,  G.  W.  Gunter  and  Allen  Philly, 
merchants,  were  the  leading  citizens  during  the  prosperous  days  of 
La  Grange. 

Lake,  a  post-village  in  the  eastern  part  of  Scott  county,  on  the 
Alabama  &  Vicksburg  R.  R.,  54  miles  east  of  Jackson,  and  10  miles 
east  of  Forest,  the  county  seat.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice, 
four  churches,  two  seminaries,  a  bank  which  was  established  in 
1905,  two  saw  mills,  one  of  which  is  the  largest  in  the  county,  good 
hotels  and  livery  stable.  Its  population  in  1906,  was  estimated 
at  500. 

Lake  City,  a  postoffice  of  Yazoo  county,  situated  on  Wolf  lake, 
8  mileG  northwest  of  Yazoo  City.  It  has  several  stores,  a  church  and 
good  schools.    Its  population  is  about  50. 

Lake  Come,  a  little  village  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Jasper 
county,  14  miles  southwest  of  Paulding,  the  county  seat,  and  1 
mile  east  of  Tallahoma  creek.    Bayspring,  4  miles  to  the  west,  on 


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MISSISSIPPI  21 

the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas  City  R.  R.,  is  the  nearest  railroad, 
banking  and  telegraph  station.    Population  in  1900,  50. 

Lake  Cormorant,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  western  part  of  De  Soto 
county,  situated  at  the  junction  of  the  main  line  of  the  Yazoo  & 
Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  and  its  Riverside  division,  15  miles  north- 
west of  Hernando,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest  banking  town. 
Population  in  1900,  52 ;  the  population  in  1906,  was  estimated  at  100. 

Lakeshore,  a  post-village  of  Hancock  county,  situated  on  the  Gulf 
coast,  and  a  station  on  the  Louisville  &  Nashville  R.  R.,  7  miles 
southwest  of  Bay  St.  Louis,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  50. 

Lake  View,  a  post-hamlet  of  De  Soto  county,  situated  on  Horn 
Lake,  and  a  station  on  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  18 
miles  northwest  of  Hernando,  the  county  seat. 

Lake,  William  A.,  was  born  in  Maryland  in  1808.  He  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar,  and  was  a  member  of  the  legislature  in  his 
native  State ;  he  removed  to  Vicksburg,  Miss.,  .in  1834,  where  he 
attained  prominence  as  a  lawyer,  and  was  elected  to  the  State  sen- 
ate of  1848,  and  to  the  United  States  congress  in  1855-57;  he 
represented  Warren  county  in  the  legislature,  1859-61 ;  and  in 
1861  was  a  candidate  for  the  Confederate  States  congress,  and  was 
killed  in  a  duel  by  his  opponent,  Chalmers. 

Lamar,  an  extinct  town  of  Benton  (formerly  Marshall)  county. 
It  was  located  on  the  stage  road  between  Holly  Springs  and  La- 
grange, Tenn.  Its  site  is  now  a  cultivated  field.  (See  Benton 
county).  It  gave  its  name  to  the  present  incorporated  town, 
situated  2  miles  east  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.  The  present  town 
of  Lamar  is  a  prosperous  little  station,  with  a  church  and  a  good 
school.    Its  population  in  1900,  was  TO. 

Lamar  County  was  the  last  on  the  roll  of  Mississippi  counties  to 
be  established,  and  was  created  March  10,  1904  from  the  second 
judicial  district  of  Marion  county  and  the  northern  part  of  Pearl 
River  county.  It  has  an  undulating  surface  of  540  square  miles. 
It  received  its  name  in  honor  of  Justice  L.  Q.  C.  Lamar,  and  the 
early  history  of  the  region  composing  its  territory  has  been  else- 
where recounted  under  the  titles  of  **Marion  County,"  and  "Pearl 
River  County."  The  original  act,  amending  the  previous  act  of 
February  19,  1904,  defined  its  boundaries  as  follows:  "Commenc- 
ing at  the  northwest  corner  of  township  5,  range  16  west  of  Saint 
Stephen's  Meridian,  thence  running  east  along  the  township  line 
to  the  northeast  corner  of  township  5,  north,  range  15  west ;  thence 
along  the  range  line  to  the  southeast  corner  of  township  5  north, 
range  15  west ;  thence  east  along  the  township  line  to  the  northeast 
comer  of  township  4  north,  range  14  west ;  thence  south  along  the 
range  line  to  a  point  one  mile  north  of  the  31st  parallel  of  latitude ; 
thence  west  to  the  line  between  ranges  15  and  16  west;  thence 
south  along  the  range  line  to  the  31st  parallel  of  latitude;  thence 
west  along  said  31st  parallel  to  the  line  between  ranges  16  and  17 ; 
thence  along  said  line  to  the  place  of  beginning.  And  that  part  of 
Pearl  River  county  contiguous  to  said  above  described  territory, 
circumscribed  by  line  run  as  follows :    Beginning  at  the  point  where 


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22  MISSISSIPPI 

the  line  between  sections  33  and  34,  township  1  north,  range  15 
west,  intersects  the  31st  parallel  of  north  latitude,  and  running  east 
along  said  31st  parallel  to  a  point  where  the  line  between  sections 
2  and  3,  township  1  south,  range  15  west,  intersects  said  31st 
parallel ;  thence  south  along  line  between  sections  2  and  3  to  comer 
of  sections  2,  3,  10  and  11,  township  1  south,  range  15  west ;  thence 
east  along  line  between  first  and  second  tiers  of  sections  south  of 
said  31st  parallel  to  the  corner  common  to  sections  5,  6,  7  and  8, 
township  1  south,  range  14  west;  thence  north  along  line  between 
sections  5  and  6  to  said  31st  parallel ;  thence  east  to  a  point  where 
a  line  drawn  centrally  north  and  south  through  section  32,  town- 
ship 1  north,  range  14  west,  intersects  said  31st  parallel;  thence 
north  1  mile  to  the  line  between  Pearl  River  and  Marion  counties ; 
thence  west  along  said  line  separating  said  counties  to  the  point 
where  it  intersects  the  line  between  sections  33  and  34,  township 
1  north,  range  15  west ;  thence  south  along  section  line  to  point  of 
beginning."  The  act  further  declares  that  Purvis  shall  be  the  seat 
of  justice,  and  authorized  the  governor  to  appoint  three  com- 
missioners from  Pearl  River  county  and  also  three  commissioners 
from  the  second  judicial  district  of  Marion  county,  to  organize  the 
county,  and  to  appoint  the  usual  county  officers  to  hold  until  their 
successors  shall  be  elected  and  qualified.  Lamar  county  was  at- 
tached to  the  second  Supreme  Court  district,  the  sixth  Congressional 
district,  and  the  second  Chancery,  Circuit  Court,  and  Railroad  Com- 
missioner's Districts,  and  the  fourth  Senatorial  District.  The 
county  assumed  its  share  of  the  debts  of  Marion  and  Pearl  River 
counties,  and  received  its  share  of  the  funds  in  the  treasuries  of  the 
two  counties.  Purvis,  the  county  seat,  is  a  lumbering  town  of  564 
people  (census  of  1900),  and  an  estimated  population  of  1,500  in 
1906,  on  the  line  of  the  New  Orleans  &  North  Eastern  R.  R.  It  is 
a  thriving  place  and  growing  at  a  rapid  rate.  Besides  the  rail- 
road above  mentioned,  a  branch  of  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R., 
traverses  the  new  county  from  east  to  west,  and  the  Mississippi 
Central  R.  R.,  crosses  the  northern  part  of  the  county  from  east 
to  west.  Lamar  is  located  in  the  long  leaf  pine  region  of  the  State, 
and  the  resources,  climatic  conditions,  and  general  topography  have 
been  described  elsewhere.  Artesian  water  has  been  found  at  Sum- 
rail  and  Lumberton.  The  total  assessed  valuation  of  real  and 
personal  property  of  Lamar  county  in  1905  was  $3,683,826  and  in 
1906  it  was  $3,882,029,  showing  an  increase  of  $198,203  during  the 
year. 

Lamar,  Lucius  Q.  C,  was  a  descendant  of  a  French  family  that 
came  to  Virginia  before  1663,  and  was  represented  subsequently 
in  Maryland,  whence,  after  several  generations,  John  Lamar,  bom 
in  1769,  who  married  his  cousin,  Rebecca  Lamar,  moved  to 
Georgia,  and  established  the  Lamar  homestead  in  Pptnam  county, 
dying  in  1833.  He  was  a  devout  Methodist,  as  were  his  descend- 
ants. One  of  his  sons,  Mirabeau  Bonaparte  Lamar,  established  a 
State  Rights  paper  at  Columbus,  Ga.,  went  to  Texas  in  1835  and 
was  conspicuous  in  the  revolution,  founded  the  educational  system 


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MISSISSIPPI  23 

of  that  State,  was  United  States  minister  to  southern  republics  in 
1857-58,  and  died  in  1859.  He  was  also  a  poet  of  no  ordinary  abil- 
ity. Another,  and  the  eldest  son  of  the  Georgia  pioneer,  was 
Lucius  Q.  C.  Lamar,  who  began  practice  at  Milledgeville  in  1818, 
compiled  one  volume  of  the  statutes,  became  a  partner  of  Judge 
Crawford,  was  elevated  to  the  circuit  bench  in  1830,  and  was 
famed  as  a  judge,  when  he  died,  July  4,  1834.  His  wife  was  Sarah 
Bird,  whose  father  was  of  a  Maryland  family,  and  whose  mother 
v^ras  a  daughter  of  Col.  Williamson,  a  famous  Georgia  patriot  of 
the  Revolution.  Another  of  the  colonel's  daughters  was  the  wife 
of  Gov.  John  Clarke,  and  another  was  the  mother  of  Justice  John 
A.  Campbell,  of  the  United  States  supreme  court.  The  eldest  son 
of  Judge  Lamar  and  his  wife,  Sarah,  was  Lucius  Quintus  Cincin- 
natus,  born  at  the  old  homestead  in  Putnam  county,  Ga.,  Sept.  17, 
1825.  Most  of  his  childhood  years  were  passed  at  Milledgeville 
and  his  father's  village  home  at  Scottsboro.  He  was  a  frail  lad, 
small  for  his  age,  quiet  and  retiring,  a  great  lover  of  books,  with 
which  he  was  surrounded,  and  considered  rather  slow  mentally 
than  quick.  He  loved  to  be  alone,  cultivating  the  powers  of  ab- 
straction and  concentration,  and  without  in  the  least  deserving  it, 
gained  a  reputation  for  moroseness.  After  his  father's  death  he 
attended  the  Georgia  Conference  manual  training  school,  in  which 
the  boys  were  put  to  farming.  When  the  school  became  Emory 
college,  under  the  presidency  of  A.  B.  Longstreet,  he  continued  as 
a  pupil,  and  was  graduated  in  1845.  Within  that  time,  Longstreet 
was  a  notable  participant  in  the  proceedings  of  the  general  con- 
ference of  the  Methodist  church  at  New  York  which  resulted  in 
the  separation  sectionally,  on  the  question  of  permitting  the  clergy 
to  be  slaveholders.  After  1845  he  studied  law  at  Macon,  with 
Absalom  H.  Chappell,  an  old  line  Whig;  was  a  short  time  his 
partner,  and  then  moved  to  Columbus,  Ga.  July  15,  1847,  he  mar- 
ried Virginia  L.,  daughter  of  Judge  Longstreet.  When  the  latter 
assumed  the  presidency  of  the  University  of  Mississippi  in  1849, 
Lamar  followed,  and  began  the  practice  of  law  at  Oxford  in  1850, 
also  taking  an  assistSmt  professorship  in  mathematics  under  Albert 
T.  Bledsoe,  1850-52.  In  the  great  political  campaign  of  1851  he 
was  a  state  rights  champion,  supporting  Jefferson  Davis,  and  met 
the  famous  Senator  Foote  in  joint  debate  at  Oxford.  Though  but 
26  years  of  age,  he  seems  to  have  won  enthusiastic  praise.  But 
in  this  period  he  thought  more  of  devoting  his  life  to  the  church 
than  to  the  State.  After  two  years  that  were  more  collegiate  than 
juridicial,  he  returned  to  Covington,  Ga.,  practiced  his  profession, 
and  was  elected  to  the  legislature  in  the  political  revulsion  of  1853. 
He  moved  to  Macon  in  1854;  made  a  visit  to  Mississippi,  bring- 
ing his  neg^o  to  add  to  the  plantation  force  of  Judge  Longstreet; 
was  a  candidate  for  nomination  to  congress  from  Georgia  in  1855, 
but  was  defeated;  and  in  October  of  that  year  finally  made  his 
home  in  Mississippi,  purchasing  a  plantation  he  called  "Solitude," 
on   the  Tallahatchee   river,  and  forming  a  law  partnership  with 


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24  MISSISSIPPI 

Christopher  H.  Mott  and  James  L.  Autrey,  which  continued  until 
1861. 

In  1857  Lamar  had  his  choice  between  candidacy  for  Congress 
to  succeed  Daniel  B.  Wright,  and  the  chair  of  metaphysics  in  the 
university.  He  chose  the  political  path,  and  though  opposed  on 
the  ground  of  his  relationship  by  marriage  to  Howell  Cobb,  who 
was  distinguished  in  Georgia  as  Henry  S.  Foote  was  in  Missis- 
sippi, he  was  nominated  by  the  Democratic  convention  at  Holly 
Springs  on  the  60th  ballot.  The  main  political  issue  then  was  the 
admission  of  Kansas  and  the  policy  there  of  Robert  J.  Walker. 
James  L.  Alcorn  was  nominated  by  the  Whigs,  and  there  was  an 
exciting  joint  canvass,  resulting  in  Lamar's  election.  He  made 
his  first  speech  in  congress  Jan.  13,  1858.  In  the  course  of  the 
furious  struggle  over  Kansas  admission  there  was  a  resort  to 
physical  prowess  early  one  February  morning,  -at  the  close  of  an 
all-night  session,  in  which  Barksdale,  of  Mississippi,  was  conspic- 
uouSy  and  "even  Lamar  of  Mississippi  and  Parson  Owen  Lovejoy 
had  a  little  set-to  in  the  course  of  the  passing  gust,"  a  correspond- 
ent wrote.  But  "he  was  a  peacemaker  rather  than  a  peacebreaker.'* 
In  some  disgust  with  politics,  Lamar  was  disposed  to  return  to 
the  University.  Chancellor  Barnard  wrote  to  him  that  though  the 
sectional  battle  for  control  of  the  senate  was  over,  the  North  hav- 
ing an  incontestible  majority,  yet  the  country  needed  in  congress 
"men  of  genuine,  unselfish  patriotism,  of  spotless  probity  and  un- 
bending integrity  of  principle,"  like  himself.  Reelected  in  1859 
without  opposition,  he  participated  with  great  eloquence  in  the 
debates  of  the  famous  session  of  1859-60.  At  this  time  he  wrote 
to  Chancellor  Barnard:  "The  sectional  war  rages  with  unabated 
violence.  No  one  started  out  with  more  of  honest  indignation 
than  I  felt.  But  I  begin  to  hope  that  there  exists  a  mutual  mis- 
understanding between  the  two  sections,  brought  about  by  ultra 
party  leaders  and  deluded  fanatics.  I  think  I  can  see,  through  all 
the  rancor  and  madness  of  this  struggle,  the  slow  evolution  of 
right  principles.  What  is  now  the  greatest  need  is  some  one  man, 
one  true  man,  who  will  present  the  whole  controversy  in  its  true 
light ;  who,  rising  above  the  passions  and  prejudices  of  the  times, 
will  speak  to  both  sections  in  a  spirit  at  once  tolerant,  just,  gener- 
ous, humane  and  national."  In  the  spring  of  1860  he  was  a  dele- 
gate to  the  Charleston  convention,  opposed  the  withdrawal  of  the 
Southern  Democrats,  and  signed  with  Mr.  Davis  an  address  call- 
ing on  them  to  meet  again  at  Baltimore.  "There  is  so  little  of 
unity,"  he  wrote  at  this  time,  "so  much  of  discord,  jealousies  and 
distrust,  between  the  most  patriotic  of  our  men,  that  I  am  op- 
pressed with  emotions  of  the  profoundest  and  most  hopeless  sad- 
ness. I  endured,  in  beholding  its  exhibition  at  Charleston  (and 
that,  too,  in  the  face  of  a  compact  and  hostile  sectional  organiza- 
tion), a  mental  torture  that  allowed  me  no  relief  except  in  the 
thought  that  it  could  not  be  otherwise."  In  June  he  accepted  the 
chair  of  ethics  and  metaphysics  in  the  University,  but  he  was  active 
in  the  campaign  of  1860,  and  was  particularly  effective  in  restrain- 


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MISSISSIPPI  25 

ing  the  growth  of  the  Bell  party.  Upon  the  election  of  Lincoln  Mr. 
Lamar  wrote  to  Judge  Longstreet:  **If  South  Carolina  will  only 
have  the  courage  to  go  out,  all  will  be  well.  We  will  have  a  South- 
ern republic,  or  an  amended  constitution  that  will  place  our 
institutions  beyond  all  attack  in  the  future."  He  was  a  partici- 
pant in  the  council  that  advised  the  governor  preparatory  to  the 
secession  convention,  and  opposed  precipitancy,  but  on  the  next. 
day,  at  Brandon,  as  reported  in  the  newspapers,  urged  the  South- 
em  people  to  rouse  from  their  lethargy  and  "arm  for  resisting 
Black  Republican  domination,"  and  submitted  a  plan  for  concerted 
secession.  In  December  he  sent  to  P.  F.  Liddell,  of  Carrollton,  a 
plan  of  secession,  including  a  draft  of  an  ordinance  to  be  adopted 
by  the  Mississippi  convention,  repealing  the  State  ordinance  by 
which  the  State  "consented  to  become  a  member  of  the  Federal 
union,"  and  inviting  fourteen  other  States  (slaveholding)  to  unite 
with  her  in  a  federal  union,  "under  the  name  and  style  of  the 
United  States  of  America."  He  proposed  to  continue  the  national 
constitution  and  laws  without  the  dotting  of  an  i  or  the  crossing 
of  a  t.  Returning  from  congress,  he  was  a  member  of  the  consti- 
tutional convention,  in  January,  1861,  and  framed  the  ordinance 
that  was  adopted,  which  was  in  some  important  respects  a  depart- 
ure from  his  original  plan.  (See  Mayes'  Lamar.  Appendix  5,) 
Subsequently  he  aided  Gen.  Mott  in  raising  a  regiment,  the  first 
one  raised  in  Mississippi  for  the  full  period  of  the  war.  It  was 
numbered  the  19th,  and  Mott  was  elected  colonel,  Lamar  lieuten- 
ant-colonel. June  1st  he  made  an  enthusiastic  address,  following 
President  Davis  and  Governor  Wise,  at  Richmond.  While  there 
he  had  the  first  attack  of  vertigo,  which  ever  afterward  oppressed 
his  life.  He  was  at  home  through  the  summer,  his  left  leg  para- 
lyzed. But  he  was  in  the  battle  of  Williamsburg,  in  May,  1862, 
and  succeeded  to  the  command  of  the  regiment  when  his  friend, 
Col.  Mott,  fell.  His  disease  returned  a  few  days  later,  he  was  com- 
pelled to  return  home,  and  in  October,  to  resign,  giving  place  to 
Col.  N.  H.  Harris.  In  November,  he  was  appointed  special  com- 
missioner to  Russia,  whither  he  started  by  way  of  Texas.  His 
letters  from  London,  in  1863,  show  his  appreciation  of  the  impor- 
tance to  the  North  of  the  friendship  of  the  great  English  labor 
leader,  John  Bright,  and  the  industrial  classes  in  Germany.  The 
Confederate  senate  refused  to  confirm  his  appointment,  for  diplo- 
matic reasons,  based  on  the  hostility  of  Napoleon  III,  to  Russia. 
After  visiting  Paris,  he  returned  by  way  of  Halifax,  and  Bermuda, 
and  by  blockade  runner  to  Wilmington,  narrowly  escaping  capture. 
In  March,  1864,  he  made  eloquent  speeches  in  Georgia  defending 
the  suspension  of  the  habeas  corpus,  meeting  the  opposition  of 
Governor  Brown  and  A.  H.  Stephens.  His  brother,  Col.  Thomp- 
son B.  Lamar,  of  the  5th  Florida  regiment,  was  killed  in  Virginia 
in  this  year.  In  December  he  returned  to  Richmond,  during  the 
remaining  few  months  of  the  war  was  judge  advocate  for  A.  P. 
Hill's  corps,  with  the  rank  of  colonel  of  cavalry,  and  was  with  the 
army  at  Appomattox.    On  his  journey  home  he  began  the  friend- 


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26  MISSISSIPPI 

ship  with  Gen.  Walthall  that  exerted  a  great  influence  upon  his 
life.  In  September,  1866,  he  formed  a  partnership  with  Gen, 
Walthall  for  the  practice  of  law  at  Coffeeville,  Miss.  For 
some  years  after  this.  Col.  Lamar  was  not  at  all  hopeful. 
He  considered  himself  "discredited  as  a  public  leader."  He  made 
no  effort,  as  others  did,  to  be  relieved  of  the  civil  disabilities  de- 
clared to  exist  because  of  his  support  of  the  Confederate  govern- 
ment. In  his  oration  at  the  University  in  1866,  "he  did  not  think 
that  there  was  even  the  shadow  of  the  doctrine  of  State  Rights 
left,  and  he  deemed  it  cruel  to  delude  the  people  with  false  views 
as  to  our  present  status,  and  with  false  hopes  as  to  the  future. 
He  could  see  no  liberty  when  a  political  line  is  drawn  with  right 
on  the  one  side  and  on  the  other  power.  He  was  of  the  opinion 
that  all  that  is  left  for  the  South  is  the  moral  and  intellectual  cul- 
ture of  her  people."  (Mayes'  Lamar,  157.)  In  1870  he  wrote  that 
"for  five  or  six  years  past  I  have  deemed  every  duty  to  which  man 
is  subject— duty  to  himself,  duty  to  his  family,  duty  to  his  coun- 
try— to  dictate  to  such  men  silence;  and  by  this  I  mean  not  to 
censure  those  whose  convictions  and  acts  are  different  from  mine." 
But  he  took  a  keen  interest  in  the  fate  of  Mr.  Davis,  and  quietly 
exerted  his  influence.  He  went  to  work  on  his  plantation,  and  in 
September,  1866,  began  the  duties  of  professor  of  ethics  and  meta- 
physics at  the  University,  also  acting  as  professor  of  governmental 
science  and  law,  which  was  his  exclusive  function  in  1867-70. 
"The  love  and  affection  which  he  aroused  in  the  hearts  of  young 
men  was  wonderful,"  wrote  C.  E.  Hooker.  Of  his  attitude  during 
the  crisis  of  1868-69,  United  States  Marshal  Pierce  wrote,  "It  was 
mainly  due  to  his  efforts  and  personal  influence  that  a  riot  was 
averted  at  Oxford,  at  an  election  held  during  November,  1869, 
and  I  knew  him  to  be  conservative,  law-abiding  and  considerate 
of  the  views  of  other  men."  After  the  establishment  of  a  negro 
majority  at  the  polls,  and  the  inauguration,  in  1870,  of  Gov.  Alcorn, 
whose  election  he  had  strongly  opposed,  Lamar  resigned  his  pro- 
fessorship, and  for  a  time  thought  of  transferring  his  law  school 
to  Macon,  Ga. ;  but  he  decided  to  remain  at  Oxford,  and  declined 
a  professorship  at  Emory  college.  In  the  years  1865  to 
1872  he  passed  through  many  days  of  brooding  over  the 
great  calamities  of  his  people.  The  effect  was  not  injurious,  though 
his  fiery  nature  sometimes  spurred  him  to  revolt.  A  friend  wrote 
to  him  that  sorrow  had  "softened,  rounded  and  made  sympa- 
thetic" his  nature.  His  meditations  went  to  the  heart  of  things.  He 
wrote  to  a  friend  in  Ohio  that  he  no  longer  looked  to  political  par- 
ties as  a  means  of  improving  public  affairs.  "I  have  not  merely 
lost  confidence  in  them ;  they  fatigue  my  contempt."  But  in  1872, 
the  year  of  the  Greeley  campaign,  he  decided  to  accept  nomina- 
tion for  cong^ress,  though  his  disabilities  had  not  been  removed. 
Gov.  Powers  and  the  Federal  and  State  officers  joined  in  a  peti- 
tion for  his  relief.  He  was  elected  by  a  majority  of  about  5,000, 
his  main  opponent  being  Col.  R.  W.  Flournoy,  Republican.  His 
election  was  so  fair,  that  when  he  appeared  at  Washington,  the 


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MISSISSIPPI  27 

only  Democratic  representative  elect,  from  Mississippi,  Congress 
was  almost  unanimous  in  removing  his  disabilities,  though  he  was 
remembered  as  a  "fire-eater."  Realizing  his  great  responsibility 
he  felt  about  anxiously  for  a  solid  foundation  upon  which  to  build 
a  policy  for  the  welfare  of  his  people.  "The  course  of  political 
history  after  the  war  had  caused  between  the  masses  of  the  North 
and  those  of  the  South  a  mutual  distrust  deeper,  and  a  hostility 
apparently  greater,  than  existed  when  the  Confederacy  fell.  The 
rivalry  of  arms  which,  although  baptized  in  blood,  was  yet  gener- 
ous, had  given  place  on  the  one  side  to  suspicions,  and  on  the 
other  to  sullen  or  fierce  resentments,  which  augured  but  ill  for 
the  happiness,  the  tranquillity,  and  the  glory  of  the  republic.  It 
was  given  to  Mr.  Lamar,  with  a  noble  self-forgetfulness,  to  dare 
the  perilous  task  of  throwing  himself,  like  another  Curtius,  into 
the  widening  chasm  and  bidding  it  to  close.  With  sympathetic 
hand  he  touched  the  freezing  hearts  of  North  and  South,  unlock- 
ing their  latent  stores  of  kindly  and  generous  feeling,  and  kindling 
anew  in  them  the  fast-failing  fires  of  love."  (Mayes.)  The  coun- 
try needed  "one  true  man,"  as  he  observed  in  1860,  and  now  he 
was  to  be  the  man.  He  waited  for  an  opportunity — such  an  effort 
could  not  be  forced  upon  an  unwilling  audience — ^waited  two  years 
for  a  time  worthy  of  the  cause,  and  it  came  in  an  invitation  from 
Massachusetts  to  second  the  motion  of  Mr.  Hoar  to  devote  the 
27th  day  of  April,  1874,  to  the  memory  of  Charles  Sumner.  On 
this  theme  Lamar  was  heard  at  first  with  amazement,  then  with 
tears,  and  at  the  close  the  vast  auditory  united  in  generous  ap- 
plause. He  laid  before  his  hearers  the  ripe  fruit  of  his  years  of 
meditation.  He  understood  Sumner  better  than  his  old  friends 
did.  "Let  us  hope,"  he  said,  "that  future  generations,  when  they 
remember  the  deeds  of  heroism  and  devotion  done  on  both  sides, 
will  speak  not  of  Northern  prowess  and  Southern  courage,  but 
of  the  heroism,  fortitude,  and  courage  of  Americans  in  a  war  of 
ideas;  a  war  in  which  each  section  signalized  its  consecration  to 
the  principles,  as  each  understood  them,  of  American  liberty  and 
of  the  constitution  received  from  their  fathers."  He  had  in  con^ 
gress  watched  with  anxious  scrutiny  the  sentiments  of  his  North- 
ern colleagues;  he  knew  the  feelings  of  his  Southern  brothers, 
"and  I  see  on  both  sides  only  the  seeming  of  a  constraint,  which 
each  apparently  hesitates  to  dismiss.  The  South — ^prostrate,  ex- 
hausted, drained  of  her  life  blood,  as  well  as  of  her  material 
resources,  yet  still  honorable  and  true — accepts  the  bitter  award 
of  the  bloody  arbitrament  without  reservation,  resolutely  deter- 
mined to  abide  the  result  with  chivalrous  fidelity;  yet,  as  if  struck 
dumb  by  the  magnitude  of  her  reverses,  she  suffers  on  in  silence. 
The  North,  exultant  in  her  triumph,  and  elated  by  success,  still 
cherishes,  as  we  are  assured,  a  heart  full  of  magnanimous  emo- 
tions toward  her  disarmed  and  discomfited  antagonist;  and  yet, 
as  if  mastered  by  some  mysterious  spell,  silencing  her  better  im- 
pulses, her  words  and  acts  are  the  words  and  acts  of  suspicion 
and  distrust.    Would  that  the  spirit  of  the  illustrious  dead  whom 


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28  MISSISSIPPI 

we  lament  today  could  speak  from  the  grave  to  both  parties  to 
this  deplorable  discord  in  tones  which  should  reach  each  and  every 
heart  throughout  this  broad  territory:  *My  countrymen!  know 
one  another,  and  you  will  love  one  another !' "  Lamar  was  a  mas- 
ter of  metaphor  and  simile;  in  this  speech  he  "talked  straight  on," 
but,  in  his  own  words  to  his  wife,  "the  rhetorical  triumph  was  as 
prodigious  as  it  was  unexpected."  He  became  famous  at  once 
above  all  other  living  American  orators.  "From  one  end  of  the 
Union  to  the  other,"  said  the  Memphis  Appeal,  "the  press  teems 
with  praises  of  the  brilliant  Mississippian."  But  there  were  not 
a  few  papers.  Southern  papers,  that  fiercely  criticised  him.  He 
wrote  to  his  wife:  "My  eulogy  has  given  me  a  reputation  that  I 
have  never  had  before.  The  whole  world  is  my  audience.  No 
one  here  thinks  I  lowered  the  Southern  flag,  but  the  Southern 
press  is  down  on  me.  That  is  unfortunate,  for  what  they  say  will 
be  copied  by  the  radical  press  of  the  North  as  evidence  .that  the 
South  still  cherishes  schemes  of  secession  and  slavery.  ... 
It  is  time  for  a  public  man  to  try  to  serve  the  South,  and  not  to  - 

subserve  her  irritated  feelings,  natural  and  just  as  those  feelings 
are.  I  shall  serve  no  other  interests  than  hers,  and  will  calmly 
and  silently  retire  to  private  life  if  her  people  do  not  approve  me." 
Back  of  all  this,  incidentally,  the  speech  was  a  tribute  to  the  great-  i 

est  enemy  of  President  Grant,  whom  Lamar  distrusted,  and  it 
contributed  powerfully  to  the  Democratic  victory  in  the  elections 
of  1874,  which  hastened  the  downfall  of  negro  domination  in  Mis- 
sissippi. An  effort  designed  solely  for  these  purposes,  which  might 
have  been  called  personal  and  partisan,  could  not  have  found  more 
effective  expression.  The  success  gave  Lamar  a  footing  which  he 
at  once  improved  by  a  great  speech  on  "Misrule  in  the  Southern 
States."    In  this  speech  he  again  asserted  that  secession  and  slav-  I' 

ery  were  dead  beyond  resuscitation,  and  that  the  people  of  the 
South  "regard  the  new  amendments  to  the  constitution,  which 
secure  to  the  black  race  freedom,  citizenship  and  suffrage,  to  be 
not  less  sacred  and  inviolable  than  the  original  charter  as  it  came 
from  the  hands  of  the  fathers.  They  owe  allegiance  to  the  latter ; 
they  have  pledged  their  parole  of  honor  to  keep  the  former,  and 
it  is  the  parole  of  honor   of   a   soldier   race."    He   defended  these  :' 

two  speeches   before   his   constituents    in    the   campaign    of  1874.  ^  ^ 

During  the  revival  of  rancor  on  account  of  the  acute  disturbances 
in  Louisiana  he  was  patiently  quiet,  writing  to  a  friend  that  it  ;' 

would  be  ruin  for  him  to  attack  President  Grant  or  Gen.  Sheridan  _^\ 

as  tyrants  and  despots.    The  Northern  people  wanted  to  see  the  'f^ 

South  prosper;  but  they  loved  Grant  and  Sheridan.     Their  quiet  ^^ 

resentment  of  military  interference  would  in  time  bring  all  the  V 

South   asked.     He  firmly,  with  great  moderation  of  speech,  pro-  '^^ 

tested  against   the    proposed    Civil    Rights    bill,    and    by  personal  > 

appeal  to  Speaker  Blaine  received  from  that  distinguished  Repub-  *cn 

lican  a  hint  that  was  used  to  secure  the  delay  necessary  to  kill  the  '  0 

bill.     (Mayes'  Lamar,  p.  215.)     In  the  spring  of  1875  he  and  Gor-  ■'[%, 

don,  of  Georgia,  made  Democratic  speeches  in  New  Hampshire,  'is 

'■'M 


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and  in  Boston  also  he  appealed  for  just  treatment  of  his  people. 
This  was  the  year  of  political  revolution  in  Mississippi.  At  the 
outset  Lamar  had  moments  of  hopelessness.  He  wrote  to  his  wife 
in  February:  "I  think  the  future  of  Mississippi  is  very^dark. 
Ames  has  it  dead.  There  can  be  no  escape  from  his  rule.  His 
negro  regiments  are  nothing.  He  will  get  them  killed  up,  and 
then  Grant  will  take  possession  for  him.  May  God  help  us."  In 
May  Albert  G.  Brown  recanted  his  criticism  of  Lamar's  cong^res- 
sional  speeches  and  called  on  every  citizen  to  recognize  him  as 
the  leader  of  the  people.  "Be  he  Democrat,  Conservative,  Repub- 
lican, if  the  ends  he  aims  at  be  his  country's,  God's  and  truth's, 
then  let  him  cast  prejudice  aside  and  follow  the  lead  of  a  man 
who  has  already  thrown  prejudice  to  the  winds,  and  in  the  g^reat- 
ness  of  his  soul,  standing  amid  the  ruins  of  his  State,  has  said: 
'My  countrymen!  let  us  know  one  another,  and  we  will  love  one 
another.' "  Answering  the  popular  call,  Lamar  canvassed  the 
State,  denouncing  the  Ames  administration  and  its  corruption  and 
usurpations,  but  exerting  his  influence  against  "the  formation  of 
parties  founded  upon  differences  of  race  or  color."  When  he  was 
unanimously  renominated  for  congress,  the  platform  "cordially 
invoked  the  union  of  good  citizens  of  every  race  and  color"  to  de- 
feat the  State  administration.  In  his  speech  before  the  Demo- 
cratic State  convention  in  1875,  he  said  that  any  impairment  of 
the  constitutional  amendments  would  be  a  violation  of  the  duty 
of  citizens.  "They  confer  upon  the  newly  enfranchised  race  the 
sacred  rights  of  freemen,  and  their  rights  are  your  duties.  Any 
effort  looking  to  the  abridgement  of  their  rights  is  fraught  with 
disaster  and  burde^is  and  ruin  to  this  people.  The  color  line  was 
talked  of.  He  declared  that  it  would  be  ruinous  to  the  victors,  if 
victory  could  be  won  that  way.  .  .  .  It  is  tyranny  unmixed, 
and  is  fraught  with  disaster.  Woe  be  unto  you  if  you  find  your- 
selves, confronted,  on  such  a  suicidal  policy,  by  the  powers  of  a 
vindictive  government  brought  upon  your  defenceless  heads." 
(Mayes*  Lamar,  252.)  A  few  weeks  later  he  wrote  to  a  Northern 
friend:  "I  have  just  emerged  from  a  struggle  to  keep  our  people 
from  a  race  conflict.  I  am  not  sure  that  we  are  yet  safe,  for  the 
black  line  is  still  maintained  by  the  agents  of  the  Federal  govern- 
ment. The  negro  race,  which  has  no  idea  of  a  principle  of  gov- 
ernment or,  of  society,  beyond  that  of  obedience  to  the  mandate 
of  a  master,  sees  in  these  agents  the  only  embodiment  of  authority 
(mastership)  in  the  country,  and  their  obedience  to  them  is  not  a 
whit  less  slavish  than  it  was  formerly  to  their  masters.  We 
could,  by  forming  the  'color  line,'  and  bringing  to  bear  those 
agencies  which  intellect,  pluck  and  will,  always  give,  overcome  the 
stolid,  inert  and  illiterate  majority;  but  such  a  victory  will  bring 
about  conflicts  and  race  passions  and  collisions  with  Federal 
power.  Our  only  deliverance  is  in  a  change  of  Federal  policy 
toward  us."  George  was  the  organizer  and  general  of  the  revolu- 
tion of  1875;  Lamar  the  statesman  who  inspired  patriotism  at 
home  and  friendship  abroad.     Wiley  P.  Harris  wrote  of  his  part^ 


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30  MISSISSIPPI 

in  the  campaign :  "I  doubt  whether  there  was  a  man  in  the  State 
who  made  more  speeches.  There  was  certainly  no  man  who  made 
abler  ones.  But  the  incomparable  service  which  he  rendered  was 
before  the  canvass  and  outside  of  the  State.  He  has  done  more 
than  any  living  man — and  Horace  Greeley  alone  is  excepted  among 
the  dead — to  produce  that  state  of  popular  feeling  at  the  North 
which  made  Ulysses  Grant  afraid  to  lay  his  hands  upon  us  during 
the  late  election.  It  was  that  sentiment  that  enabled  us  to  win. 
To  Lamar,  more  than  to  any  other  one  man,  was  this  feeling  due. 
Without  it,  we  could  not  have  succeeded." 

Henry  Grady,  of  Atlanta,  described  him  in  1875 :  "Mr.  Lamar 
has  all  the  physical  characteristics  of  his  knightly  and  illustrious 
family;  that  peculiarly  swarthy  complexion,  pale  but  clear;  the 
splendid  gray  eyes;  the  high  cheek  bones;  the  dark-brown  hair; 
the  firm  and  fixed  mouth;  the  face  thoroughly  haughty  and  re- 
served when  in  repose,  and  yet  full  of  snap  and  fire  and  magnetism 
when  in  action." 

When  Congress  met  in  December,  1876,  the  Democratic  ma- 
jority made  him  permanent  chairman  of  the  caucus  in  the  house. 
In  his  speech  of  acceptance  he  declared  the  grandest  aspiration  of 
his  party  was  to  make  the  constitution  "the  protector  of  every 
section  and  of  every  State  in  the  Union,  and  of  every  human  being 
of  every  race,  color  and  condition  in  the  land."  Of  his  own  people 
he  said  "We  want  a  government  that  we  can  love  and  revere,  and 
serve  from  the  motive  of  reverence  and  love.  We  hunger  for  a 
patriotism  which  shall  knit  all  the  people  together  in  a  generous 
and  loving  brotherhood,  and  which  shall  be  as  broad  as  the  terri- 
tory over  which  the  national  flag  floats."  In  comment  the  Mem- 
phis Appeal  said,  "He  has  contributed  more  than  any  one  man  in 
all  this  broad  Union  toward  securing  the  present  Democratic  ma- 
jority in  the  house  of  representatives,  and  there  is  a  universal 
desire  among  Democrats  outside  of  Mississippi  to  see  the  great 
talents,  statesmanship  and  patriotism  of  L.  Q.  C.  Lamar  transferred 
to  the  United  States  senate."  Despite  some  opposition,  partly  by 
those  disposed  to  keep  up  a  protest  against  constitutional  amend- 
ments, partly  on  account  of  his  value  in  the  lower  house,  he  was 
chosen  unanimously  by  the  legislative  caucus,  but  in  his  accept- 
ance he  found  it  advisable  to  again  explain  the  Sumner  speech. 
His  explanation  was  that  he  meant  every  word  he  said.  "Charles 
Sumner  imagined  that  he  was  acting  in  the  cause  of  humanity  and 
freedom  when  he  advocated  universal  suflFrage."  When  he  re- 
turned to  Washington  he  found  his  cause  endangered  by  the 
"chapter  of  blunders"  known  as  the  "Amnesty  bill"  debate.  A 
Northern  newspaper  correspondent  had  written  of  Lamar:  "He 
is  ever  courteous,  never  insulting  and  abusive,  never  announcing 
himself  personally  responsible,  as  used  to  be  too  common  in  Con- 
gress, and  which  bad  specimens  of  bad  breeding,  bad  manners  and 
bad  feeling  seem  again  coming  into  vog^e."  In  this  debate  Blaine, 
for  partisan  reasons,  purposely  provoked  some  Southern  members 
to  passionate  outbursts,  tending  to  create  distrust  and  revive  mem- 


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ones  of  ante-bellum  conditions.  Lamar  found  fault  with  no  one, 
but  immediately  took  advantage  of  debate  on  the  Centennial  bill, 
to  put  himself  heartily  in  support  of  that  great  enterprise  and 
assert  with  masterly  logic  and  unapproachable  eloquence  "the 
majestic  sovereignty  of  our  nationality."  A  correspondent  said 
he  "poured  out  an  exposition  of  nationalism  and  constitutionalism 
which  equalled  in  effect  one  of  Webster's  masterpieces."  His 
exponents  bowed  at  once  to  his  masterly  strategy  and  manly  sin- 
cerity. The  bold  defiance  of  old  prejudices  won  the  praise  of  those 
who  had  been  his  opponents  at  home.  The  Belknap  impeachment 
followed,  in  which  Blaine  again  attempted  the  same  tactics,  but 
this  time  Lamar  answered  him,  with  perfect  coolness  and  gentle- 
ness, and  humiliated  his  antagonist  by  an  exposure  of  his  weak 
point,  ignorance  of  constitutional  law.  Later  in  the  year  he  made 
a  g^eat  speech  on  the  general  Southern  question,  explaining  rea- 
sonably the  instances  of  riot,  and  insisting  that  the  only  cure  was 
tolerance  by  the  nation  of  local  self-government.  In  1877  he  sup- 
ported the  bill  for  an  electoral  commission,  as  the  only  hope  for 
the  success  of  Mr.  Tilden,  refusing  to  consider  the  talk  of  an  ap- 
peal to  arms,  because  Northern  Democrats  would  not  have  gone 
into  it,  and  such  a  move  by  Southern  Democrats  would  have  fin- 
ally and  irretrievably  ended  the  hopes  of  the  party.  Besides,  "I 
know  what  civil  war  means,  and  you  know  it,"  he  said  to  his  con- 
stituents. He  opposed  filibustering  and  quietly  acepted  the  result. 
The  wisdom  of  his  course  is  now  unquestioned,  but  he  was  fiercely 
criticised  at  home.  Th  result  crowned  the  work  of  Lamar's  two 
terms  in  Congress.  When  there  was  delay  in  withdrawing  the 
troops  from  Louisiana  and  South  Carolina  after  the  inauguration 
of  Mr.  Hayes,  Mr.  Lamar  wrote  him  a  strong  letter  of  appeal^ 
March  22.  Next  day  the  president  began  to  move  visibly  in  the 
matter,  ^nd  within  two  weeks  the  troops  were  withdrawn  from 
support  of  the  Chamberlain  and  Packard  governments. 

March  5,  1877,  Mr.  Lamar  presented  his  credentials  to  the  sen- 
ate. There  had  been  an  investigation  designed  to  impeach  the 
fairness  of  the  election  of  the  legislature  in  1875,  and  he  was  not 
certain  that  the  majority  would  permit  him  to  take  a  seat.  Kel- 
logg was  at  hand  with  credentials  as  senator  from  the  Packard 
government  in  Louisiana.  .  Morton,  the  radical  leader  in  the  sen- 
ate, proposed  to  make  Lamar  wait  until  Kellogg  was  seated  on  his 
prima  facie  title,  investigation  to  follow.  Again  Mr.  Blaine  came 
to  the  aid  of  Lamar,  who  was  sworn  in  without  delay.  In  the 
following  August  Senator  Lamar  appeared  before  the  State  con- 
vention of  his  party  and  was  received  with  tremendous  applause. 
He  had  reached  the  culmination  of  his  work  of  "reconstruction,"" 
and  advised  his  friends  to  turn  their  attention  to  questions  of  na- 
tional policy.  The  first  of  these  questions  that  demanded  ,an  utter- 
ance from  him  in  the  session  of  1877-78  was  the  proposition  that 
the  United  States  bonds  were  rightfully  payable  in  silver  dollars. 
He  opposed  this,  denying  the  validity  of  the  "free  silver"  argu- 
ments, and  asserting  that  the  proposed  step  tended  to  contract  the 


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currency  and  impair  the  financial  standing  of  the  nation.  As  the 
"free  silver"  policy  was  favored  by  the  Democratic  party  gener- 
ally, Mr.  Lamar's  speech  and  votes  produced  what  Senator  Wal- 
thall called  "the  temporary  jar,  the  only  one  that  ever  occurred, 
between  the  people  of  Mississippi,  or  some  of  them,  and  Mr. 
Lamar."  The  lower  house  of  the  Mississippi  legislature  passed 
a  resolution  declaring  that  the  "Hon.  Blanche  K.  Bruce,  senator 
of  the  United  States  from  this  State"  had,  in  voting  in  favor  of 
the  silver  proposition,  "reflected  the  sentiment  and  will  of  his 
constituents."  Both  houses  instructed  the  senators  to  vote  for 
the  remonetization  of  silver.  Senator  Lamar  had  the  resolution 
read  in  the  senate,  and  declared  that  he  had  always  tried  to  teach 
the  young  men  of  Mississippi  that  "truth  was  better  than  false- 
hood, honesty  better  than  policy,  courage  better  than  cowardice." 
He  must  now  manifest  his  loyalty  to  his  honest  convictions.  "I 
will  vote  against  this  bill."  He  knew,  he  said,  "that  the  time  is 
not  far  distant  when  they  will  recognize  my  action  today  as  wise 
and  just."  Walthall's  comment  on  reading  this  speech,  was,  "He 
has  done  it,  but  grander  even  than  I  thought;  and  now  his  claim 
to  greatness  is  permanent  and  fixed."  The  New  York  Nation  said 
that  the  speech,  "for  manliness,  dignity  and  pathos,  has  never  been 
surpassed  in  Congress."  But  the  attitude  of  the  majority  in  his 
own  State  more  deeply  concerned  Lamar.  He  wrote  his  wife: 
"Can  it  be  true  the  South  has  not  the  intelligence  and  public  vir- 
tue needed  to  meet  the  emergencies  upon  her?  .  .  .  Have  the 
spirit  of  her  fathers,  the  sagacity  of  Jeflferson,  the  patriotism  of 
Washington,  the  virtue  of  Clay,  departed  from  her?  And  is  she 
to  be  the  victim  of  the  demagogue — blind  leaders  of  the  blind  to 
their  common  destruction?"  His  own  defense  of  his  policy  may 
be  epitomized  by  those  words  in  which  he  recalled  a  favorite  ex- 
pression. The  South  stood  in  Congress,  he  said,  "on  her  parole  of 
honor."  And  what  is  that  parole?  he  asked.  "The  validity  of  the 
public  debt  shall  not  be  questioned."  During  the  year  1878  some 
of  the  Mississippi  newspapers  continued  to  antagonize  him,  and 
about  the  time  when  he  was  meeting  Blaine  in  debate  on  the  accu- 
sation of  suppression  of  the  colored  vote  and  illegitimate  repre- 
sentation in  congress,  a  letter  from  Jefferson  Davis  was  published, 
citing  the  precedents  of  Greece  and  Rome,  reviving  the  formulas 
of  State  sovereignty,  and  declaring  that  it  had  been  the  practice  of 
Democrats  "either  to  obey  instructions  or  to  resign."  This  sur- 
prised and  pained  the  senator,  as  Mr.  Davis  had  never  given  him  a 
sign  of  disapprobation  before  putting  this  letter  in  the  hands  of 
his  most  active  newspaper  critic,  Ethelbert  Barksdale,  and  he 
hated  to  see  "anything  trashy"  come  from  Mr.  Davis.  A  few  days 
later  he  made  a  dramatic  defense  of  Mr.  Davis  from  aspersion  in 
the  United  States  senate,  and  Mr.  Davis  sent  him  a  letter  of 
thanks.  It  was  in  June,  1879,  that  Mr.  Lamar  had  the  famous 
verbal  encounter  with  Senator  Roscoe  Conkling,  of  New  York. 
Conkling,  a  lordly  and  overbearing  man,  deliberately  charged  him 
with  bad  faith  in  regard  to  the  conduct  of  proceedings,  relating 


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MISSISSIPPI  33 

to  consideration  of  the  Army  bill.  Lamar,  who  had  long  expected 
some  such  encounter,  replied  that  if  the  senator  from  New  York 
meant  anything  inconsistent  with  good  faith,  "I  pronounce  his 
statement  a  falsehood,  which  I  repel  with  all  the  unmitigated  con- 
tempt that  I  feel  for  the  author  of  it"  Conkling  rejoined  that  if 
the  senator  from  Mississippi  "did  impute  or  intend  to  impute  to 
me  a  falsehood,  nothing  except  the  fact  that  this  is  the  Senate 
would  prevent  my  denouncing  him  as  a  blackguard  and  a  coward." 
Mr.  Lamar  then  said:  "Mr.  President,  I  have  only  to  say  that 
the  Senator  from  New  York  understood  me  correctly.  I  did  mean 
to  say  just  precisely  the  words,  and  all  that  they  imported.  I  beg 
pardon  of  the  senate  for  the  unparliamentary  language.  It  was 
very  harsh ;  it  was  very  severe ;  it  was  such  as  no  good  man  would 
deserve,  and  no  brave  man  would  wear."  The  incident  could  not 
be  understood  except  through  the  knowledge  that  Lamar  habitu- 
ally avoided  Conkling,  and  that  he  felt  that  Conkling  was  plotting 
to  break  his  reserve  and  draw  him  into  a  discussion  that  he  re- 
garded as  "unwise  and  silly"  on  the  part  of  his  Democratic  col- 
leagues. His  rejoinder,  therefore,  was  not  an  outburst  of  passion, 
but  was  carefully  calculated  for  political  as  well  as  personal  posi- 
tion. There  was  talk  of  a  duel;  but  the  day  had  passed  for  that 
mode  of  assuaging  verbal  discomfitures.  In  the  fall  of  1879  he 
took  part  in  the  State  campaign,  when  the  party  was  in  danger  of 
disorganization  between  the  efforts  of  the  Greenbackers  and  those 
called  "Bourbons"  or  "the  unreconstructed."  In  his  speeches,  the 
attacks  upon  him  compelled  him  to  combat  with  elaborate  argu- 
ment the  theory  of  State  sovereignty  as  applied  to  the  right  of 
the  legislature  to  control  the  action  of  national  delegates.  He 
showed  remarkable  power  to  win  the  popular  approval  in  these 
campaign  speeches,  and  worked  a  revolution  in  sentiment  wher- 
ever he  went.  In  the  following  January  he  exerted  his  influence 
toward  the  election  of  Gen.  Walthall  to  the  senate,  but  the  Walthall 
and  Barksdale  men  found  it  necessary  to  unite  on  Gen.  Greorge. 
After  ithis  he  was  for  several  weeks  disabled  by  his  illness,  pre- 
viously mentioned,  and  though  he  returned  to  congress  it  was 
with  a  sensation  of  the  imminence  of  death.  An  event  of  1881  for 
which  he  was  censured  by  some,  hastily,  was  his  brief  speech  in 
favor  of  putting  Gen.  Grant  upon  the  retired  list  of  the  army.  The 
session  beginning  in  March,  1881,  was  one  of  the  most  acrimon- 
ious in  the  history  of  the  senate,  because  of  the  equality  of  the 
parties.  Gen.  Mahone,  of  Virginia,  holding  the  balance  of  power. 
Lamar  found  occasion  again  to  say  that  though  he  had  been  a 
secessionist,  and  had  devoted  himself  to  the  conception  of  two 
republics,  he  had  returned  to  his  first  love,  taught  him  by  his 
father  and  mother — "tha/t  of  one  grand,  mighty,  indivisible  repub- 
lic upon  this  continent,  throwing  its  loving  arms  around  all  sec- 
tions ;  omnipotent  for  protection,  powerless  for  oppression,  cursing 
none,  blessing  all."  In  the  election  of  1881,  of  a  legislature  to 
choose  his  successor  or  reelect  him,  he  was  indirectly  opposed  by 
several  powerful  newspapers,  and  the  matter  was  complicated  by 

3-II 


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34  MISSISSIPPI 

the  contest  for  governor.  His  friends  desired  the  nomination  of 
John  M.  Stone  for  governor,  and  in  this  they  we^e  defeated.  A 
Greenback-Republican  fusion  was  effected,  supporting  the  nom- 
ination of  Benjamin  King  for  governor.  Lamar  looked  upon  this 
as  an  attempt  to  revive  "negro  government,"  the  domination  of 
the  negro  vote,  "just  as  it  was  before  1875,  with  not  one  feature 
of  mitigation,  and  with  many  other  elements  of  aggravation  and 
degradation."  On  this  theory  he  made  a  great  campaign  for  the 
election  of  Gen.  Lowry,  the  Democrtic  nominee,  while  the  nation 
looked  upon  it,  with  deep  interest,  as  a  fight  largely  for  the  justifi- 
cation of  the  broad  and  generous  national  policy  of  which  he  was 
himself  the  exponent.  The  result  was  that  when  the  legislature 
met  he  was  reelected  senator  without  the  formality  of  a  caucus. 
In  1883  he  made  his  first  great  speech  on  the  tariff,  supporting  the 
Democratic  position.  In  1884  he  made  speeches  in  the  State  fav- 
oring the  candidacy  of  Mr.  Cleveland  for  president.  His  Holly 
Springs  speech  had  this  theme:  "We  white  people  ought  to  keep 
united,"  and  attracted  wide  attention.  When  the  news  came  of 
Cleveland's  election  he  said,  "It  is  a  terrible  responsibility,"  and 
fell  into  a  prolonged  reverie.  His  life  for  years  had  been  given  to 
rigid  repression  of  every  impulse  but  the  conquest  of  a  hostile 
majority  by  courtesy,  tolerance,  and  appeal  to  the  fundamental 
facts  of  social  life  and  organization.  He  had  lost  the  capacity  for 
partisan  jubilation.  At  the  end  of  the  year  his  wife  died.  George 
F.  Edmunds  wrote  to  him  tender  words,  closing,  "Come  on  then, 
my  dear  sir,  and  put  your  strong  shoulder  to  the  wheel  of  gov- 
ernment and  to  all  the  good  things  to  be  done,  and  all  will  be  well." 
Toward  the  latter  part  of  February  he  accepted  an  invitation  from 
Mr.  Cleveland  to  take  a  place  in  his  cabinet,  and  on  March  6  he 
was  appointed  Secretary  of  the  Interior.  In  this  position  he  dis- 
played an  enormous  capacity  for  hard  work.  His  order  to  close 
the  department  and  put  the  flag  at  half  mast  upon  the  death  of 
Jacob  Thompson,  former  secretary,  was  taken  advantage  of  by 
the  political  opponents  of  the  administration  to  create  a  greater 
storm  of  criticism  of  Mr.  Lamar  than  he  had  theretofore  known. 
Mr.  Thompson's  name  was  popularly  associated  in  the  north  with 
disagreeable  traditions.  At  the  same  time  Secretary  Lamar  was 
accused  of  not  favoring  the  South  in  appointments  to  department 
position,  and  he  came  in  generally  for  his  share  of  the  partisan 
censure  of  Mr.  Cleveland's  methods,  in  regard  to  "spoils,"  which 
have  since  then  become  the  settled  policy  of  the  government.  In 
1886  he  received  the  degree  of  LL.  D.  from  Harvard  university,  at 
its  250th  anniversary.  Jan.  5,  1887,  he  was  married  to  the  widow  of 
Gen.  W.  S.  Holt,  a  daughter  of  James  Dean,  of  Georgia.  In  the 
following  April  he  delivered  the  oration  at  the  unveiling  of  the 
Calhoun  monument  at  Charleston.  This  was  probably  his  own 
most  monumental  work,  and  he  spoke  without  more  than  a  hour's 
special  preparation,  putting  into  words  the  fruit  of  his  study  and 
experience  regarding  the  relations  of  the  States  and  Federal  gov- 
ernment.   Later  in  the  same  year  he  was  the  guest  of  honor  at  the 


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MISSISSIPPI  35 

119th  annual  banquet  of  the  New  York  chamber  of  commerce  and 
responded  to  the  toast,  The  President.  In  May,  Justice  Woods, 
of  the  supreme  court,  died,  and  some  Southern  man  was  in  the  line 
of  succession.  Cleveland  looked  to  Lamar  as  "certainly  the  best 
of  living  men,"  saying  "his  mind  and  heart  are  right,  and  he  can- 
not decide  anyithing  wrong." 

His  name  was  sent  to  the  senate  December  6.  A  presidential 
campaign  was  at  hand,  and  partisan  opposition  was  made,  which 
delayed  confirmation.  He  resigned  his  place  in  the  cabinet  Jan.  7, 
1888,  forcing  the  senate  to  consider  his  name  as  that  of  a  private 
citizen.  Gen.  Walthall  then  proposed  to  resign  from  the  senate, 
to  which  he  had  been  elected  to  succeed  Lamar,  that  the  latter 
might  be  reelected,  but  Lamar  refused  to  listen  to  it.  The  judiciary 
committee  reported  against  his  confirmation,  on  the  grounds  of 
age  and  legal  qualifications,  but  the  senate  confirmed  his  appoint- 
ment Jan.  16,  Riddleberger  of  Virginia  and  three  Western  sena- 
tors furnishing  the  majority.  This  was  the  greatest  honor  accorded 
any  former  Q)nfederate,  the  highest  recognition  up  to  that  time 
of  the  national  fealty  of  the  men  who  had  been  Confederate  sol- 
diers a  quarter  century  earlier.  He  was  installed  upon  the  bench 
of  the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States  Jan.  18,  1888,  and  his 
work  there  continued  until  his  fatal  illness,  in  1892.  Of  this  work, 
Chief  Justice  Fuller  said,  "He  was  invaluable  in  consultation.  His 
was  the  most  suggestive  mind  that  I  ever  knew,  and  not  one  of  us 
but  has  drawn  from  its  inexhaustible  store."  He  was  also  fully 
up  to  the  average  of  the  justices  in  the  work  of  preparing  opinions. 
Other  activities  occupied  part  of  these  final  years.  He  delivered 
an  address  before  Emory  college  in  1890,  and  another  before  Cen- 
ter college,  Ky.,  in  1891.  In  October  of  the  latter  year  he  was  a 
delegate  to  the  Ecumenical  council  of  the  Methodist  church  at 
Washington.  In  February,  because  of  a  great  failure  in  strength, 
he  visited  Pass  Christian.  Subsequently  he  resumed  his  place  on 
the  bench.  In  December,  1892,  he  started  again  for  the  Mississippi 
coast,  but  was  compelled  to  stop  at  Macon,  Ga.,  the  old  home  of 
his  wife,  where  he  died  suddenly,  Jan.  23,  1893.  He  was  buried 
temporarily  near  that  city,  and  about  a  year  later  the  body  was 
carried  to  Oxford,  Miss.,  for  final  interment.  (Abridged  from 
"Life,  Times  and  Speeches,"  by  Edward  Mayes,  LL.  D.) 

Lamb,  a  postoffice  of  Bolivar  county. 

Lambert,  a  postoflice  of  Quitman  county. 

Lameta,  a  postoffice  of  Leake  county. 

Lamkin,  a  postoffice  of  Yazoo  county. 

Lamant,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Bolivar 
county,  at  the  junction  of  two  branches  of  the  Yazoo  &  Missis- 
sippi Valley  R.  R.,  25  miles  by  rail  south  of  Rosedale.  It  has  a 
money  order  postoffice.    Population  in  1900,  76.. 

Lampton,  a  postoffice  of  Marion  county,  on  the  Columbia  branch 
of  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,  4  miles  south  of  Columbia,  the 
county  seat. 


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36  MISSISSIPPI 

Land  Claims,  British.  In  1815  the  legislative  council  and  house 
of  representatives  of  the  Mississippi  territory  petitioned  congress 
for  relief  from  the  claims  under  British  patents  against  lands  held 
under  Spanish  patents  and  by  donation  or  purchase  from  the  United 
States. 

"From  January  1768  to  September,  1779,  numerous  British 
grants  were  made  by  the  governor  of  West  Florida;  those  in  the 
Natchez  district  being  chiefly  made  to  officers  of  the  British  army 
and  navy,  and  in  many  instances  were  of  large  dimensions.  The 
largest  embraced  25,000  acres;  two  others,  20,000  each;  several 
were  for  10,000,  and  very  few  for  less  than  1,000  acres.  These  were 
so  located  as  to  embrace  a  large  portion  of  the  most  valuable 
lands  bordering  on  the  Mississippi,  for  a  breadth  of  six  or  eight 
miles  from  Fort  Adams  to  the  Yazoo,  and  extending  along  the  al- 
luvial lands  of  the  principal  streams  of  the  district." 

"To  each  of  these  grants  was  appended,  by  a  ribbon,  a  ponder- 
ous wax  seal,  some  three  inches  in  diameter,  the  British  arms  be- 
ing impressed  on  the  obverse,  surrounded  by  the  inscription: 
"Sigillum  provinciae  nostra  Florida  occidentalis,"  with  other  in- 
scriptions and  legends.  The  conditions  of  these  grants  as  to  occu- 
pancy cultivation  and  improvement  were  such,  if  not  regarded  as 
mere  words  of  form,  to  render  them  utterly  void.  Few  of  the  lands 
granted  were  occupied  or  improved  to  the  extent  required,  proof 
of  which  was  to  have  been  made  within  a  stated  time.  They  were, 
therefore,  inchoate,  if  strictly  construed,  and  were  never  perfected. 
Many  of  them,  however,  were  nevertheless  recognized  and  con- 
firmed by  the  succeeding  Spanish  government,  which,  though  ac- 
quiring the  country  by  conquest,  yet  with  great  liberality  guaran- 
teed these  possessions  to  the  holders,  upon  the  performance  of 
certain  reasonable  requirements,  such  as  presentation  and  proof  of 
title,  accompanied  with  occupancy,  allowing  several  years  for  this 
purpose."     (Wailes,  Report  of  1854). 

There  is  a  distinction  to  be  made  between  the  grants  to  persons 
about  to  occupy  the  lands  themselves,  and  those  who  obtained 
patents  with  the  purpose  of  organizing  speculations  of  colonies, 
and  a  third  class  who  were  given  patents  as  a  token  of  the  royal 
appreciation  .  The  last  class  usually  received  a  mandamus  from  the 
king,  while  the  ordinary  applicant  presented  a  petition  to  the  gov- 
ernor and  council  at  Pensacola,  and  received  a  warrant  of  survey, 
directed  to  the  surveyor-general.  Upon  the  proper  return  from  the 
surveyor  a  patent  issued. 

There  were  grants  to  William  Walter,  Alexander  Moore  and 
Alexander  Boyd,  on  the  Mississippi,  in  1768 ;  to  Daniel  Clark,  near 
Natchez,  in  the  same  year;  to  Jacob  PhilHppi,  James  Watkins  and 
Daniel  McGillivray,  on  Cole's  creek,  to  Alexander  Mcintosh,  on 
Petit  Gulf,  1770.  After  this  there  was  a  period  when  West  Florida 
was  without  a  governor,  or  lieutenant-governor,  and  Chester  did 
not  sign  many  grants  until  1772  in  the  Mississippi  region.  Anthony 
Hutchins  obtained  a  grant  of  1,000  acres  on  Second  creek  in  1772, 
for  434  in  1773.     Other  grants  in  1772-73  were  to  Amos  Ogden 


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MISSISSIPPI  37 

(by  royal  mandamus)  14,115  acres  on  the  Homochitto,  Oct.  27, 
1772,  mostly  conveyed  to  Samuel  Swayze;  Daniel  Perry,  on  Cole's 
and  Second  creeks;  William  Ratcliff,  on  Second;  John  Campbell, 
on  the  Mississippi;  Samuel  Wells  and  Innis  Hooper,  on  Second; 
Sarah  Holmes,  William  Alexander,  Michael  Hooter,  Alexander 
Mcintosh,  John  Campbell,  Jacob  Winfree,  William  Joiner.  In 
1775  Thaddeus  Lyman,  (See  Lyman  Colony.)  by  mandamus,  was 
granted  20,000  acres  on  Bayou  Pierre.  Thomas  Hutchins  was 
granted  1,000  on  the  Homochitto  in  the  same  year,  and  John  Hol- 
comb  a  tract  on  the  same  waters.  In  1775-76  there  were  grants  to 
Robert  Robertson,  Daniel  Perry,  John  Caldwallader  and  the  Wil- 
liamses  (Grove  Plantation),  Samuel  Lewis,  Evan  Cameron,  Wil- 
liam Hayes,  John  Blommert,  Enoch  Horton.  In  1777-79,  the  period 
of  greatest  immigration  and  the  last  two  years  of  British  control 
on  the  Mississippi,  there  were  grants  to  James  Cole,  James  Robert- 
son, William  Vousdan,  Seth  Doud,  Thomas  Comstock,  John  Bolls, 
Sara  Mayes,  Charles  Percy,  James  S.  Yarborough,  William  Hiem, 
Zaccheus  Routh,  William  Case,  John  Hartley,  John  Smith,  David 
Adams,  Andrew  Cypress,  John  Row,  John  Talley,  John  Collins, 
Nathan  Sweazy,  John  Luck,  Richard  Ellis,  Christian  Bingaman, 
John  Bentley,  William  Brown,  Phillip  Hannon,  Alexander  Mcin- 
tosh, Samuel  Gibson,  Isaac  Johnson,  Alexander  Ross,  Jacob  Paul, 
Christopher  Guice,  James  Perry,  Athanasius  Martin.  The  Brit- 
ish royal  instructions  in  1765,  entered  at  Pensacola,  regarding  those 
proposing  to  settle,  were  that  100  acres  be  granted  to  every  head 
of  family,  and  50  for  every  other  man,  woman  or  child  in  the  fam- 
ily, including  negroes,  and  as  much  more  as  deemed  advisable, 
not  to  exceed  1,000  acres,  provided,  "it  shall  appear  to  you  they  are 
in  condition  and  intention  to  cultivate  the  same."  The  conditions 
were  that  the  settler  should  pay  to  the  receiver  of  quit  rents,  on 
day  of  grant,  five  shillings  for  every  fifty  acres,  and  a  perpetual 
quit  rent  of  a  half  penny  per  acre,  payable  at  the  feast  of  St. 
Michael  annually.  Further  grants  were  to  depend  upon  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  original  grant. 

By  the  treaty  of  1783,  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  the  sub- 
jects of  King  George,  including  the  loyalist  colonies  and  refugees 
from  the  United  States,  were  granted  18  months  in  which  to  sell 
their  estates  and  remove  their  effects  as  well  as  their  persons.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period  the  property  was  to  be  forfeited  of 
all  those  who  did  not  swear  allegiance  to  the  king  of  Spain.  This 
allowance  of  time  was  afterward  very  liberally  extended.  But 
where  the  terms  were  not  finally  complied  with,  by  actual  occu- 
pation of  the  land  and  oath  of  allegiance,  the  lands  were  confiscated 
and  regranted  to  any  satisfactory  applicant.  There  was  also  a  con- 
siderable confiscation  of  British  grants  after  the  revolt  of  1791, 
where  the  holders  were  concerned  in  that  uprising  against  the 
Spanish.  It  was  the  custom  of  the  Spanish  government  to  make 
new  grants  of  such  lands  as  were  not  occupied  by  former  grantees 
or  were  vacated  after  occupation.  A  title  without  occupation  and 
cultivation  was  contrary  to  Spanish   policy.     Hence  it  followed 


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38  MISSISSIPPI 

that  during  the  Spanish  reoccupation  of  the  region  up  to  the  Yazoo 
from  1780  to  1798,  land  grants  were  made  which  covered  old 
English  grants,  the  holders  of  which  made  no  remonstrance,  evi- 
dently because  their  claims  would  not  have  been  valid  under  a  con- 
tinuance of  Spanish  government.  They  lacked  the  essential  Span- 
ish conditions  of  occupation,  cultivation  and  improvement. 

When  the  United  States  took  possession  title  was  claimed  by 
many  non-resident  holders  of  British  grants,  among  them  the  fol- 
lowing, from  the  list  made  in  1809,  the  number  of  acres  being  ap- 
pended to  the  names:  Elihu  Hall  Bay,  1,100,  also  as  assignee  of 
William  Gamier  4,800;  William  Grant,  2,000;  Dr.  John  Lorimer, 
2,000 ;  John  Smith,  James  Barbour,  850 ;  Amos  Ogden,  3,075 ;  Thad- 
deus  Lyman,  2,100.  Grant's  and  Lorimer's  grants  were  at  Wal- 
nut Hills,  dated  1776.  Alexander  McCullagh,  on  the  grants  to 
various  parties,  for  about  5,000  acres;  Col.  Augustine  Prevost,  for 
9,000  acres  mainly  on  Cole's  creek,  granted  to  himself;  Robert 
Callender's  heir's,  2,000  at  Loftus  cliffs,  grantee  of  John  Blom- 
mert,  2,000:  Sir  George  Bridges  Rodney,  5,000  on  the  river  Mis- 
sissippi; various  representatives  of  Amos  Ogden  for  several  thou- 
sand acres  on  the  Homochitto,  representatives  of  David  Hodge  for 
several  large  tracts  assigned  to  him.  Altogether  the  commission- 
ers reported  about  80,000  acres  claimed  by  non-residents  under 
British  grants. 

Some  claimants  had  imperfect  titles  for  other  reasons,  such  as 
William  Silkrigs,  (Silkrag?)  who  claimed  he  got  a  British  war- 
rant for  survey  of  200  acres  on  the  Mississippi  in  1777,  which  was 
surveyed  by  William  Vousdan,  after  which  he  did  work  upon  it, 
but  was  taken  prisoner  by  the  Americans  in  1779  and  carried  down 
the  river.  After  this  he  remained  with  the  Americans  until  he 
was  retaken  by  the  British.  By  this  time  the  Indians  had  plund- 
ered his  place,  and  he  remained  in  the  settled  parts  of  the  country 
until  the  Americans  took  possession. 

An  interesting  light  upon  these  claims  is  found  in  the  corres- 
pondence of  Anthony  Hutchins  (Mississippi  Archives).  Writing 
Jan.  7,  1799,  to  Col.  William  Johnstone:  "You  have  a  tract  or  two 
below  the  White  Cliffs  adjacent  to  lands  I  bought  of  my  brother, 
Capt.  Thomas  Hutchins.  I  don't  know  in  whose  name  you  claim 
it,  whether  in  the  name  of  Mrs.  Johnstone  or  a  Mr.  Hughs,  or  in 
your  own  name.  I  cannot  well  remember,  but  as  it  adjoins  my 
land  and  after  I  returned  from  England  Mr.  Isaac  Johnson  told 
me  he  was  your  attorney  I  cleared  and  cultivated  a  few  acres  in- 
tending to  secure  the  possession  of  it  for  you,  which  improvement 
I  still  occupy  and  think  that  nothing  can  be  wanting  but  your 
titles  and  your  more  fuller  power  of  attorney  to  hold  it  for  you, 
although  a  Mr.  Daniel  Clark  has  obtained  a  Spanish  grant  for  it  in 
the  name  of  a  Spaniard  and  hath  sold  it  to  a  Mr.  Farrar.  Mr. 
Isaac  Johnson  has  removed  below  the  line  and  is  now  a  Spanish 
subject."  In  September  previous  Col.  Hutchins  had  served  notice 
on  Benjamin  Farrar  "as  a  neighbor,  that  Col.  Johnstone  claims 
that  land  and  is  the  lawful  and  rightful  owner  of  it." 


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MISSISSIPPI  39 

The  Madison,  Gallatin  and  Lincoln  commission  of  1803,  which 
outlined  the  policy  to  be  followed  in  acts  of  congress,  said  of  these 
claims:  "The  West  Florida  patents  were,  with  but  few  excep- 
tions, accompanied  with  a  clause  of  forfeiture,  unless  the  land 
should  be  improved  within  ten  years ;  and  the  Spanish  government 
seem  to  have  considered  all  the  unimproved  lands  as  forfeited. 
It  is,  however,  alleged  on  the  part  of  the  grantees,  that,  although 
a  condition  of  settlement  was  commonly  annexed  to  the  grants 
in  the  British  provinces  under  the  royal  governments,  with  a 
penalty  of  forfeiture  in  case  of  default,  this  has  never  been  en- 
forced either  by  the  British  government,  or,  after  the  Revolution, 
by  the  States;  and  that  the  Indians  at  first,  and  the  Spanish  con- 
quest, afterwards,  rendered  in  this  case  a  fulfillment  of  the  condi- 
tion impossible.  Where  the  land  has  been  regranted  by  Spain, 
the  parties  must  be  left  to  a  judicial  decision ;  but  where  it  remains 
unclaimed  by  any  other  person,  the  commissioners  are  of  opinion 
that  it  would  be  improper  for  the  United  States  to  grant  it  again, 
until  the  amount  and  nature  of  the  grants  shall  have  been  fully  as- 
certained." 

Under  the  first  land  law  relating  to  the  Territory,  1803,  British 
claimants  under  British  grants  were  required  to  register  at 
Natchez,  before  the  last  day  of  March,  1804.  There  was  a  memo- 
rial by  various  claimants,  nonresident,  transmitted  to  the  United 
States  government,  through  Minister  Erskine  in  that  month,  and 
a  supplemental  act  was  passed,  extending  the  time  for  lands  west 
of  Pearl  river  to  the  last  of  November,  1804.  Another  and  final 
extension,  by  act  of  March  2,  1805,  was  to  December  1  of  that 
year. 

The  question  also  arose,  did  Spain  have  any  right  to  make 
grants  of  land  north  of  31'',  which  was  the  boundary  of  the  United 
States  agreed  to  by  Great  Britain  in  1787  and  acceded  to  by  Spain 
in  1795,  although  she  had  occupied  the  disputed  territory  between 
those  dates,  and  on  to  1797.  Spanish  grants  were  recognized  by 
the  United  States  land  office  up  to  the  date  of  the  treaty  of  1795, 
and  many  of  these  grants  bore  date  in  that  year.  Some  were  under 
suspicion  of  being  antedated. 

In  the  Georgia  cession  it  was  agreed,  by  article  2,  "that  all  per- 
sons who,  on  the  27th  day  of  October,  1795,  were  actual  settlers 
within  the  territory  thus  ceded,  shall  be  confirmed  in  all  the  grants 
legally  and  fully  executed  prior  to  that  day  by  the  former  British 
government  of  West  Florida,  or  by  the  government  of  Spain. 

Then,  by  the  act  of  congress  of  March  3,  1803,  provision  was 
made  for  issuing  certificates  to  claimants  under  English  and  Span- 
ish grants,  who  were  actual  settlers  at  the  date  named,  but  it  was 
also  provided  that  British  grants,  valid  in  other  respects  but  with- 
out actual  settlement  should  be  reported  to  congress,  and  the  lands 
"contained  in  said  grants  shall  not  be  otherwise  disposed  of  until 
the  end  of  one  year  after  that  date."  By  the  Georgia  cession 
5,000,000  acres  were  reserved  from  sale  to  compensate  claimants 
other  than  actual  settlers ;  and  Section  8  of  the  law  of  1803  speci- 


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40  MISSISSIPPI 

fied  claimants  under  "British  grants  for  lands  which  have  not  been 
regranted  by  the  Spanish  government"  is  this  class,  to  be  compen- 
sated out  of  the  reservation. 

In  case  the  Spanish  government  had  regranted  land  covered  by 
an  old  British  grant,  the  land  commissioners  were  required,  by  a 
•proviso  of  the  law  of  1803,  to  state  the  fact  in  the  certificate,  "in 
which  case  the  party  shall  not  be  entitled  to  a  patent,  unless  he 
shall  have  obtained  in  his  favor  a  judicial  decision  in  a  court  having 
jurisdiction  therein."  This  latter  provision  defeated  the  purpose 
of  the  actual  settlers  clause  in  the  Georgia  cession,  and  the  first 
sections  of  the  law  of  1803,  and  permitted  the  paper  titles  of  Brit- 
ish favorites  to  cloud  the  claims  of  actual  settlers.  This  was  in  the 
face  of  the  admitted  disregard  of  these  alleged  British  titles  by  the 
Spanish  government,  last  in  possession  of  the  domain.  In  this  con- 
nection the  British  claimants  made  a  great  show  of  that  law  of 
nations,  laid  down  in  Vattel,  called  jus  postliminium,  by  virtue  of 
which  things  taken  from  an  enemy  are  restored  to  their  former 
status  on  coming  again  under  the  former  dominion.  This  would  as- 
sume that  British  royalists  came  into  their  own  as  it  was  under 
British  dominion,  when  Spain  relinquished  the  Natchez  district 
to  the  United  States.  As  pointed  out  by  Col.  John  M.  White  in 
Florida,  in  passing  on  the  same  kind  of  claims,  the  doctrine  would 
not  apply  unless  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain  were  allies 
in  1776-83. 

In  1812  congress  enacted  that  every  person  or  legal  representa- 
tive of  such  person,  claiming  lands  in  the  Territory,  by  virtue 
of  a  British  or  Spanish  warrant  or  order  of  survey,  granted  prior 
to  Oct.  27,  1795,  who  was  on  that  day  actually  resident  in  the. 
Territory,  and  whose  claims  had  been  regularly  filed  with  the 
proper  register  of  the  land  office,  be  confirmed  in  his  rights  to  the 
land  claimed.  But  this  left  out  those  who  were  reviving  old  Brit- 
ish warrants  for  speculative  purposes.  These  sent  agents  into  the 
country  and  there  was  considerable  annoyance  of  those  who  were 
then  occupying  the  land  claimed  on  such  warrants. 

In  November,  1815,  the  general  assembly  of  Mississippi  terri- 
tory adopted  an  appeal  to  congress,  setting  out  the  condition. 
"The  patents  by  which  these  British  claims  are  held,"  they  said, 
covered  tracts  of  land  for  the  most  part  of  enormous  size.  In  many 
cases  the  lines  were  never  run,  nor  had  they  any  other  than  nat- 
ural boundaries,  and  but  few  of  the  grantees,  if  any,  were  ever  in 
possession.  "One  great  ground  upon  which  they  assert  their 
claims  is  the  treaty  commonly  known  as  Jay's  treaty  (1794)  ;  but 
it  appears  to  your  memorialists  that  they  could  not  have  been  in- 
cluded in  the  just  meaning  of  that  treaty,  as  the  United  States 
were  not  in  possession  of  the  territory  at  its  date;  but  if  these 
claimants  were  included  therein,  their  claims  were  forfeited  by  their 
laches  under  proclamation  of  the  Spanish  government. 

"The  present  holders,  or  persons  from  whom  they  have  pur- 
chased for  valuable  consideration,  under  the  full  faith  anfl  credit 
of  the  Spanish   government,   received  those  grants,  and  wading 


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MISSISSIPPI  41 

through  all  the  toil,  difficulty  and  danger  attending  the  settlement 
of  a  new  country,  have  improved  those  lands  (which  at  that  time 
were  considered  of  little  or  no  value)  at  the  expense  of  vast  labor 
and  treasure,  until  they  have  risen  in  value  from  ten  to  thirty  dol- 
lars per  acre.  Under  the  Spanish  government  those  settlers  re- 
mained in  quiet  and  peaceable  enjoyment  of  their  lands,  because 
the  British  claims  (with  which  our  citizens  are  now  threatened) 
were  considered  as  invalid.  They  lay  dormant  and  would  forever 
have  slept,  had  it  not  been  for  the  event  of  the  United  States  get- 
ting possession  of  the  territory — an  event  which  has  been  hailed 
by  every  emigrant  from  the  United  States,  and  of  whose  govern- 
ment they  have  shown  themselves  worthy,  and  have  handsomely 
supported  by  their  conduct  during  the  late  war." 

Mr.  Robertson,  chairman  of  the  congressional  committee  to 
which  this  memorial  was  referred,  reported  Feb.  12,  1816,  pointing 
out  that  congress  had  impaired  the  security  of  titles  guaranteed  in 
the  Georgia  settlement,  and  recommending  a  bill  for  quieting  and 
adjusting  claims  to  lands  in  the  Territory.  In  this  report  it  was 
said: 

"It  is  not  for  the  committee  to  say  whether  the  British  grants 
are  void  on  account  of  their  magnitude,  because  the  conditions  on 
which  they  were  made  may  not  have  been  performed,  or  because 
they  were  disregarded  by  the  Spanish  authorities  and  the  tracts 
covered  by  them  regranted  as  vacant  land.  Nor  do  they  deem  it 
incumbent  on  them  to  decide  how  far  Spain  was  founded  in  keep- 
ing possession,  granting  lands  and  performing  other  acts  of  sov- 
ereignty over  the  country,  from  the  date  of  the  treaty  of  peace  of 
1783  to  the  time  of  her  yielding  it  up  in  1798;  or  how  far  she  had 
a  right  to  annul  the  grants  previously  made  by  the  British  govern- 
ment. In  ascending  to  the  source  of  the  evils  which  exist,  and 
which  threaten  with  vexations  the  most  intolerable,  or  entire  ruin, 
a  numerous  and  respectable  portion  of  our  fellow  citizens,  they  are 
found  to  flow  from  an  omission  on  the  part  of  the  United  States 
to  take  an  earlier  possession  of  the  country  in  question ;  and  there- 
fore, the  present  inhabitants,  who  may  be  the  innocent  victims  of 
the  course  pursued,  are,  in  the  opinion  of  the  committee^  clearly 
entitled  to  the  just  and  benevolent  interposition  of  the  govern- 
ment." 

At  this  time  Seth  Hunt  was  the  most  active  claimant  of  lands 
under  the  British  grants.  The  claims  presented  by  him  covered 
72,190  acres,  to  be  located  above  and  below  and  around  Natchez,  at 
Loftus  Heights,  on  the  Homochitto,  Bayou  Pierre  and  Buffalo. 
These  claims  were  based  on  grants  to  the  earl  of  Harcourt,  Ad- 
miral Bentinck,  Thomas  Comyn,  Admiral  Ferguson,  Admiral  Mc- 
Dougal,  Admiral  Sir  Richard  Onslow,  Sir  William  Balling,  Maj. 
Francis  Hutchinson,  John  Bradley  and  others,  twenty-four  in  all. 
Besides,  there  was  the  claim  of  the  Earl  of  Eglinton  for  20,000 
acres,  F.  A.  Haldimand  for  1,500,  Sir  G.  B.  Rodney  for  5,000,  Au- 
gustin  Prevost  for  9,000,  Elihu  Hall  Bay  for  16,375,  Alexander 
McCuIloch,  of  South  Carolina,  for  3,700,  Admiral  Spry  for  3,500, 


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42  MISSISSIPPI 

Thaddeus  Lyman  for  20,000  on  Bayou  Pierre,  John  Stevenson, 
3,000,  Mrs.  Wegg,  3,000,  Philip  Barbour  2,000  at  Grand  Gulf. 
These  made  the  total  number  of  grants  prosecuted  38,  and  area 
claimed  174,465  acres,  in  the  most  closely  settled  part  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi country. 

In  1818  the  matter  was  referred  by  congress  to  William  H. 
Crawford,  secretary  of  the  treasury,  for  an  opinion,  and  he  reported 
a  bill  for  the  settlement  of  claims,  but  it  appears  that  congress  took 
no  action,  leaving  the  claims  to  be  adjusted  under  the  law  of  1&03 
and  the  amendments  thereto. 

See  Domain,  Law  of. 

Land  Commissioner.  The  constitutional  convention  of  1890, 
by  ordinance,  required  the  legislature  to  provide  for  the  elec- 
tion of  a  Land  Commissioner  at  the  general  election  in  1895,  for  a 
four  years'  term  of  office,  to  have  charge  of  the  swamp  and  over- 
flowed lands,  the  Internal  Improvement  lands,  the  records  of  the 
office  of  Surveyor-general  turned  over  by  the  United  States  to  this 
State,  the  Chickasaw  school  lands,  the  Sixteenth  section  and  In- 
demnity lands,  the  lands  forfeited  for  non-payment  of  taxes,  and  all 
other  public  lands  and  land  records  of  the  State  not  otherwise 
provided  for.  Accordingly,  Col.  John  M.  Simonton  was  elected 
in  November,  1895,  for  a  term  of  four  years,  beginning  in  Jan- 
uary, 1896.  (See  Swamp  Lands.)  Upon  the  death  of  Col.  Simon- 
ton,  in  1898,  the  governor  appointed  E.  H.  Nail,  who  has  since  then 
held  the  office  by  election.  His  last  report  shows  sales  of  lands 
in  1903-05,  of  $148,000. 

In  1899  Warren  county  secured  in  the  chancery  court  an  injunc- 
tion against  the  sale  by  the  land  commissioner  of  attract  of  land 
in  Issaquena  county,  the  county  claiming  title  undeV  the  acts  of 
congress  and  the  legislature  regarding  levee  lands.  On  appeal 
to  the  supreme  court,  the  claim  of  the  county  was  sustained. 

Land  Grants,  French,  1717-21.  The  Western  Company  sent 
over  a  large  number  of  settlers  to  Louisiana  during  the  years 
1717-1721.  Numerous  concessions,  or  grants  of  land,  were  made 
also  to  private  individuals  at  this  period  of  time.  Among  the 
more  important  ones  was  a  grant  of  16  leagues  square  to  John 
Law,  about  30  miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas,  where  he 
established  a  post.  One  on  the  Yazoo,  to  M.  le  Blanc  and  others ; 
one  at  Natchez  to  M.  Hubert ;  one  on  the  Red  river  to  M.  Benard 
de  la  Harpe ;  one  at  Point  Coupee,  to  M.  de  Meuse ;  one  at  the  Ton- 
icas,  to  M.  de  St.  Reine;  one  at  Baton  Rouge,  to  M.  Diron  d'Ar- 
taguette;  one  at  Bayou  Manchac,  on  the  west  side  of  the  river, 
at  the  Bayagoulas,  to  M.  Paris  Duvernay;  one  at  the  Tchoupitou- 
las,  to  M.  de  Muys;  one  at  Cannesbrule,  to  the  Marquis  d'Artag- 
nac ;  one  on  the  Black  river  to  M.  de  Villemont ;  one  on  the  Pas- 
cagoula  river  to  Madame  de  Cheaumont;  one  at  the  Bay  of  St. 
Louis  and  Old  Biloxi,  to  Madame  de  Mezieres;  one  at  Natchez 
to  M.  de  la  Houssaye,  also  on  the  Quachita;  one  at  the  Houmas, 
to  the  Marquis  d'Ancenis. 

The  owners  of  these  grants  were  wealthy  and  prominent  people 


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MISSISSIPPI  43 

in  France.  They  were  expected  to  send  to  the  colony  agents, 
laborers,  tools,  implements,  etc.,  and  to  proceed  at  once  to  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  soil.  These  various  grants  were  described  in  some 
detail  by  Father  Charlevoix,  who  inspected  them  all  in  his  journey 
down  the  Mississippi  in  1721.  The  failure  of  John  Law  in  1720 
had  seriously  affected  the  operations  of  the  Western  company,  and 
had  almost  put  a  stop  to  immigration  and  the  improvements  on  the 
concessions.  Things  were  at  a  standstill.  This  was  the  condition 
of  affairs  which  prevailed  at  the  time  of  his  visit,  and  we  need 
not  be  surprised  that  he  reported  the  concessions  in  a  very  un- 
favorable light.  The  plantations  were  either  devoid  of  laborers 
for  the  most  part,  or  the  ocupants  were  so  lazy  and  incapable  that 
their  poverty  "very  unjustly  disparages  a  country  which  will  ren- 
der a  hundred-fold  of  whatever  is  sowed  in  it."  Though  he  found 
the  numerous  grants,  which  had  cost  so  much  labor  and  effort, 
and  whose  fabled  richness  had  created  such  a  sensation  in  France, 
in  a  wretched  condition,  he  nevertheless  declares  that  he  has  never 
heard  Louisiana  lightly  spoken  of,  "but  by  three  sorts  of  people 
that  have  been  in  the  country,  and  whose  testimony  is  certainly  to 
be  rejected.  The  first  are  the  mariners,  who,  from  the  road  off 
Ship  Island  or  Isle  Dauphin,  could  see  nothing  but  that  island 
quite  covered  with  barren  sand,  and  the  still  more  sandy  coast  of 
Biloxi,  and  who  suffered  themselves  to  be  persuaded  that  the 
entrance  of  the  Mississippi  was  impassable  for  ships  of  a  certain 
bulk,  or  that  it  was  necessary  to  go  fifty  leagues  up  this  river  to 
find  a  place  that  was  habitable. 

The  second  sort  are  poor  wretches  who  are  being  driven  out  of 
France  for  their  crimes  or  bad  conduct,  true  or  false,  or  who, 
whether  to  shun  the  pursuit  of  their  creditors,  have  engaged  them- 
selves in  the  troops  or  in  the  grants.  Both  these  looking  upon  this 
country  as  a  place  of  banishment,  are  disgusted  at  everything. 
They  do  not  interest  themselves  in  the  success  of  the  colony,  of 
which  they  are  members  against  their  inclination. 

The  third  sort  are  those  who,  having  seen  nothing  but  poverty 
in  a  country  on  which  excessive  expenses  have  been  bestowed,  at- 
tribute to  it  what  we  ought  entirely  to  cast  on  the  incapacity  or 
on  the  negligence  of  those  who  had  the  care  of  settling  it.  You  also 
know  very  well  the  reasons  they  had  to  publish  that  Louisiana 
contained  great  treasures,  and  that  it  brought  us  near  the  famous 
mines  of  St.  Barbe  and  others  still  richer,  from  which  they  flat- 
tered themselves  they  could  easily  drive  away  the  possessors  (the 
Spaniards)  ;  and  because  these  idle  stories  had  gained  credit  with 
some  silly  people,  instead  of  imputing  to  themselves  the  error,  in 
which  they  were  engaged  by  their  foolish  credulity,  they  have 
discharged  their  spleen  on  the  country,  where  they  have  found 
nothing  of  what  had  been  promised  them."  Journal  of  Father 
Charlevoix,  His.  Coll.  of  La.,  part  III,  pp.  187-8). 

The  concession  on  the  Yazoo  was  obtained  by  M.  le  Blanc, 
French  Minister  of  War,  M.  le  Compte  de  Belle-Isle,  M.  le  Mar- 
quis d'Asfeld  and  M.  le  Blond,  brigadier  engineer,  the  last  named 


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44  MISSISSIPPI 

being  in  the  colony  with  the  title  of  director-general.  On  De- 
cember 14,  1720,  the  ships  TElephant  and  le  Dromedaire  arrived 
at  Ship  Island  bringing  250  people  for  this  concession,  including 
the  officers  MM.  Dillon,  Fabre,  Duplessis,  Levillej,  La  Suze  and  La 
Combe.  This  grant  was  about  nine  miles  from  the  mouth  of  the 
Yazoo,  and  was  protected  by  Fort  St.  Peter  (St.  Claude),  and  a 
small  garrison  of  soldiers. 

M.  de  la  Harpe,  who  visited  this  concession  early  in  1722,  wrote 
as  follows  of  it:  "About  thirty  arptnts  of  this  concession  is  cul- 
tivated, but  the  rest  of  the  soil  is  so  thin  and  sandy,  that  it  can 
never  be  cultivated,  besides  the  situation  is  unhealthy.  The  course 
of  the  Yasous  from  its  mouth  is  northwest,  and  then  it  turns  and 
runs  north-northeast  a  half  league  to  the  stone  bluffs,  upon  which 
is  situated  the  establishment  of 'M.  le  Blanc.  The  cabins  of  the 
Yasous,  Courois,  Ossogoula,  and  Ouspie  are  dispersed  over  the 
country  upon  mounds  of  earth  made  with  their  own  hands,  from 
which  it  is  inferred  that  these  nations  are  very  ancient,  and  were 
formerly  very  numerous,  although  at  the  present  time  they  hardly 
number  two  hundred  and  fifty  persons."  The  settlement  v\as  de- 
stroyed, and  the  inhabitants  butchered  by  the  Indians,  December 
12, 1729,  a  short  time  after  the  massacre  at  Natchez.  (See  Western 
Company:  Charlevoix;  Fort  Rosalie;  Fort  St.  Claude.) 

Land  Grants,  Spanish.  "Lands  were  obtained  with  little  diffi- 
culty or  expense.  The  immigrant  made  his  selection  of  any  unoc- 
cupied parcel,  and  presented  a  written  request  for  an  order  of  sur- 
vey. If  no  obstacle  intervened,  the  governor  issued  the  order, 
and  on  the  return  of  the  plat  and  the  payment  of  very  moderate 
fees  for  surveying,  the  grant  issued.  Many  settled  under  the  order 
of  survey  merely,  if  the  survey  could  not  be  immediately  made. 
The  earliest  Spanish  order  of  survey  in  the  Natchez  district,  is 
dated  April  20,  1784,  and  the  latest,  September  1,  1795."  (Clai- 
borne, p.  140). 

The  grants  of  land  by  the  Spanish  government  in  the  Natchez 
district  began  to  be  made  in  considerable  abundance  in  1787,  and 
continued  until  the  district  was  surrendered  to  the  United  States. 
Among  the  grants  were  the  following.  Celeste  Hutchins,  1,000 
acres  near  White  Cliffs,  1788;  Cato  West,  1,500  on  Cole's  creek, 
1789;  Daniel  Burnet,  2,000  on  Bayou  Pierre,  1790  and  1795;  Ab- 
ner  Green,  665  on  West  Bayou  Pierre,  600  on  the  Mississippi,  135 
on  St.  Catherine,  1789;  Maria  Green,  his  wife,  500  on  Second 
Creek,  1788;  Gerard  Brandon,  800  on  west  Bayou  Sara,  1790; 
Gabriel  Benoist,  1,600  on  Fairchild's  creek,  1788,  1,000  on  Cole's 
creek,  1793;  Benajah  Osmun,  600  on  Bayou  Sara,  1795;  Anthony 
Hutchins,  1366  on  the  Mississippi,  1789-90,  2,146  on  west  Cole's, 
1790,  242  on  Cole's  1795;  Narsworthy  Hunter,  1,000  on  Cole's 
creek,  1795;  Adam  Bingaman,  3,898  on  Bayou  Sara  and  St.  Cath- 
erine, 1788-89;  William  Dunbar,  4,950,  mainly  on  Bayou  Sara 
waters,  1787-95;  Ann  and  William  Dunbar,  jr.,  2,000  on  Feliciana 
creek,  1793;  Stephen  Minor,  500  on  Mississippi,  1786,  1,015  on  Sec- 
ond creek,  1787,.  13  in  Natchez,  1795,  1,000  on  Second  creek,  1792, 


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MISSISSIPPI  45 

1,180  on  Big  Black,  1795,  875  on  Mississippi,  1795;  Manuel  Gayoso 
de  Lemos,  242  near  Natchez,  1794. 

All  the  Spanish  land  titles  were  recognized  by  the  United  States 
after  occupation  of  the  territory,  so  far  as  the  claimants  were  in 
the  actual  possession  and  use  of  the  land  on  the  day  of  the  treaty 
of  San  Lorenzo,  by  which  Spain  relinquished  her  claim  to  the 
region.     (See  British  Land  Claims.) 

"The  titles  derived  from  the  Spanish  government  were  of  two 
grades ;  orders  of  survey,  and  complete  patents,  the  former  being 
the  incipient  or  incomplete  form  of  the  latter.  To  procure  a  grant 
of  land,  the  applicant  addressed  a  requete,  (request  or  petition) 
to  the  Spanish  governor,  in  New  Orleans,  and  hence,  from  the  cor- 
ruption of  the  word,  the  term  ricket,  by  which  one  class  of  the 
claims  were  known  tp  the  early  settlers.  If  the  petition  was 
granted,  an  order  of  survey  was  issued  by  the  governor  to  the 
Surveyor-General  Don  Carlos  Trudeau,  to  cause  the  land  prayed 
for  to  be  surveyed  and  put  into  possession  of  the  petitioner.  This 
duty  was  performed  by  the  deputy-surveyor  of  the  district,  and 
the  survey  being  approved  and  returned,  accompanied  by  a  plat, 
the  governor  thereupon  granted  his  patent;  the  usual  fees  being 
paid  in  all  the  stages  of  the  process  by  the  grantee."  (Wailes, 
Report  of  1854.) 

Many  occupants  of  land  contented  themselves  with  the  warrant 
of  survey,  without  going  to  the  expense  of  obtaining  a  patent,  and 
as  Gov.  Claiborne  reported  in  1802,  "this  species  of  title  is  esteemed 
here  as  very  strong,  in  an  equitable  point  of  view :  and  I  am  well 
informed  they  were  viewed  as  legal  under  the  Spanish  govern- 
ment, and,  by  custom,  the  proprietor  was  authorized  to  sell  after 
three  years*  occupancy." 

William  Vousdan  was  at  one  time  the  surveyor  for  the  district 
of  Natchez,  and  was  succeeded  by  William  Dunbar. 

"The  grants  of  the  Spanish  government  appear  to  have  been 
confined  to  persons  actually  residing  on  the  lands ;  but  they  were 
made  indiscriminately  on  every  unoccupied  tract,  whether  the 
same  had  been  previously  granted  by  the  British  government  or 
not;  nor  did  they  discontinue  making  concessions,  even  after  Spain 
had,  by  the  treaty  of  October,  1795,  recognized  the  right  of  the 
United  States  to  the  whole  territory  north  of  the  31st  degree  of 
north  latitude.  Until  the  evacuation,  which  was  delayed  for  nearly 
two  years,  had  taken  place,  grants  were  issued,  sometimes  bearing 
their  real  date,  and  sometimes,  as  is  alleged,  antedated."  .  .  . 
Incomplete  grants  were  more  common  in  Spanish  than  in  English 
titles,  "it  having  been  customary  until  the  American  settlers  at 
Natchez  requested  patents,  to  consider  a  Spanish  order  of  survey, 
when  executed  and  returned,  as  a  sufficient  title;  whilst,  on  the 
other  hand,  few  settlers  are  obliged  to  claim  under  incomplete 
British  titles,  as  they  generally  applied,  in  lieu  of  them,  for  Span- 
iish  grants,  and  now  claim  under  them."  (Report  of  Madison  com- 
mission, 1803.) 

Strangely,  the  treaty  of  1795  made  no  provision  to  protect  those 


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46  MISSISSIPPI 

who  had  been  given  title  to  land  by  the  Spanish  in  the  region  re- 
linquished by  that  treaty.  In  1798  the  Spanish  colonial  authori- 
ties declared  the  treaty  would  not  be  carried  out  until  some  ar- 
rangement was  made  on  the  subject  between  the  two  governments; 
but  nothing  was  done,  and  the  remonstrance  seemed  a  mere  pre- 
text to  cover  other  reasons  for  delay. 

Antedated  grants  were  also  a  subject  of  much  discussion.  The 
principal  claims  thus  under  suspicion,  were  to  William  Vousdan, 
Robert  Moore,  Thomas  Burling,  James  Moore,  Sarah  Scott,  Wil- 
liam Moore,  James  White  (8,200  acres),  Margaret  Thompson, 
Jacintha  Gallagher  (who  became  Jacintha  Vidal),  and  were  mostly 
on  Bayou  Sara  and  Bayou  Pierre.  The  list  included  a  grant  to 
William  Dunbar  for  a  lot  in  Natchez.  In  December,  1801,  Gov. 
Claiborne  wrote  to  the  secretary  of  state  : 

"Subsequent  to  the  ratification  of  the  treaty  with  the  United 
States  and  Spain,  and  shortly  before  this  district  was  evacuated 
by  the  Spaniards,  the  Spanish  governor  and  his  agents  granted  to 
some  of  their  favorites  much  valuable  land,  and  in  order  that  the 
grants,  upon  inspection,  might  appear  leg^l,  they  were  made  to 
bear  date  previous  to  the  treaty.  This  kind  of  conduct  is  known 
to  have  been  practiced,  and  indeed  some  persons  who  have  been 
benefited  by  the  fraud  are  stated  to  me  to  have  avowed  it.  In  some 
instances  the  fraudulent  grants  were  made  for  lands  which  had 
been  previously  bona  fide  granted,  and  in  a  case  of  this  kind,  where 
suit  has  been  brought,  the  holder  of  the  fraudulent  grant  (which 
was  eldest  in  date)  obtained  a  recovery.  In  the  inferior  court, 
where  the  case  was  first  inquired  into,  parole  testirnony  was  ad- 
mitted to  invalidate  the  antedated  grant,  and  the  defendant  ob- 
tained a  verdict ;  but,  upon  appeal  to  the  superior  court,  the  parole 
testimony  was  declared  inadmissable,  and,  of  course,  the  plaintiflF 
suceeded."  The  legislature  proposed  to  enact  a  law  authorizing 
the  admission  of  the  excluded  testimony,  but  the  governor  advised 
against  this  for  the  present,  but  could  see  no  way  according  to  the 
rules  of  law  to  remedy  the  wrong.  The  question  was  cleared 
up  by  the  ruling  of  Levi  Lincoln,  attorney-general  of  the  United 
States,  May  11, 1802,  that  "nothing  can  be  clearer  than  that  all  grants 
made  by  the  Spanish  government  after  the  ratification  of  the  treaty 
by  which  the  land  was  ceded  to  the  United  States,  are  void,"  and 
further  that  "the  only  question  is,  when  was  the  patent  granted, 
not  when  it  was  executed,  or  what  is  its  date?"  Finally,  after 
much  litigation  it  was  established  as  a  principle  of  law  that  the 
Spanish  government  had  no  rightful  authority  to  grant  lands  in 
the  Natchez  district  after  Great  Britain,  in  1783,  had  acknowledged 
th^  limits  of  the  United  States  to  include  the  district.  But  the 
congress  had  full  power  to  recognize  such  of  the  grants  as  it 
deemed  advisable. 

Land  Laws,  Spanish.  The  instructions  regarding  new  settlers, 
issued  by  Gov.  Gayoso  at  New  Orleans,  Sept.  9,  1797,  were  that 
unmarried  immigrants,  those  not  farmers,  must  reside  four  years 
before  they  would  be  granted  lands.    There  must  be  an  under- 


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MISSISSIPPI  47 

standing  that  the  children  of  settlers  must  become  Catholics,  if 
they  were  not,  and  no  .Protestant  preacher  would  be  admitted 
under  any  circumstances.  "To  every  new  settler,  answering  the 
foregoing  description  and  married,  there  shall  be  granted  200  ar- 
pents  of  land ;  50  arpents  shall  be  granted  for  every  child  he  shall 
bring  with  him."  It  was  further  provided  that  where  a  settler 
brought  negroes  he  should  be  allowed  20  arpents  for  each  negro, 
but  never  to  exceed  800  arpents  in  all  to  any  one  proprietor.  "It 
is  necessary,  by  all  possible  means,  to  prevent  speculation  in  lands." 
"No  lands  shall  be  granted  to  traders,  as  they  live  in  the  towns, 
they  do  not  need  them."  "Immediately  on  the  arrival  of  a  new 
settler,  the  oath  of  fidelity  shall  be  required  of  him."  If  married 
he  must  submit  proofs  of  the  same,  show  what  is  his  property  and 
what  his  wife's,  and  make  this  representation  correctly,  or  forfeit 
his  property.  "The  new  settler  to  whom  lands  hav€  been  granted 
shall  lose  them  without  recovery  if  in  the  term  of  one  year  he  shall 
not  begin  to  establish  himself  upon  them,  or  if,  in  the  third  year, 
he  shall  not  have  put  under  labor  ten  arpents  in  every  hundred." 
There  was  no  right  to  sell  until  three  crops  had  been  raised  on 
one-tenth  of  the  land. 

Land  Ofiices.  The  first  enactment  of  the  United  States  con- 
gress regarding  the  lands  of  Mississippi  territory,  bears  date  March 
3,  1803.  The  territorial  government  was  established  in  1798,  but 
the  authority  of  the  United  States  to  provide  for  the  rights  of  the 
inhabitants  in  the  lands  they  held  and  regulate  the  sale  of  vacant 
lands,  was  not  clear  until  after  the  agreement  with  Georgia  in 
1802. 

This  act  provided,  "That,  for  the  disposal  of  the  lands  of  the 
United  States  within  th€  Mississippi  Territory,  two  Land  Offices 
shall  be  established  in  the  same :  one  at  such  place  in  the  county  of 
Adams,  as  shall  be  designated  by  the  President  of  th^  United 
States,  for  the  lands  lying  West  of  'Pearl  River,'  sometimes  called 
*Half-way  River' ;  and  one  at  such  place  in  the  county  of  Washing- 
ton, as  shall  be  designated  by  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
for  the  lands  lying  East  of  Pearl  River;  and  for  each  of  the  said 
offices  a  Register  and  Receiver  of  Public  Moneys  shall  be  ap- 
pointed," etc.,  the  same  regulations  being  made  as  in  the  North- 
west territory. 

Until  more  land  than  the  old  districts  of  Natchez  and  Mobile, 
north  of  latitude  31'',  should  be  acquired  from  the  Indians,  it  was 
the  duty  of  the  register  in  each  district  to  act  with  two  persons  to 
be  appointed  by  the  president,  as  a  commission  to  adjust  the  claims 
arising  from  grants  and  other  acts  of  the  former  governments  of 
the  country. 

On  July  9,  1803,  Edward  Turner,  of  Mississippi,  was  appointed 
register  of  the  land  office  for  the  lands  lying  west  of  Pearl  river. 
He  was  reappointed  Nov.  18,  1804.  On  March  3,  1805,  Thomas 
Hill  Williams,  of  Mississippi  territory,  was  appointed  register  for 
the  county  of  Adams,  west  of  Pearl  river,  and  the  latter  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Nehemiah  Tilton,  of  Delaware,  by  appointment  Jan. 


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48  MISSISSIPPI 

10,  1811.  East  of  Pearl  river  Joseph  Chambers  was  the  first  regis- 
ter. The  commissioners  appointed  were  Thomas  Rodney,  of  Del- 
aware, and  Robert  Williams,  of  North  Carolina,  for  the  western 
district,  to  have  their  office  at  Washington;  and  Ephraim  Kirby, 
of  Connecticut,  and  Robert  Carter  Nicholas,  of  Kentucky,  for  the 
eastern  district,  to  have  their  office  at  St.  Stephens. 

The  board  for  the  district  west  of  Pearl  river  "convened  at  the 
town  of  Washington  on  December  1,  1803,  and  continued  open 
for  the  reception  of  claims  until  July  3,  1807,  when  it  was  ad- 
journed sine  die,  after  having  received  for  record  2,090  claims. 
Some  of  these  claims  were  subsequently  contested  in  the  high 
courts  of  the  United  States."  There  were  no  public  lands  to  be 
disposed  of  ab  initio,  except  such  as  might  be  found  unclaimed  in 
the  Natchez  district.  Settlers  upon  the  land,  who  were  in  posses- 
sion March  3,  1803,  were  to  have  the  preference  in  becoming  pur- 
chasers at  the  price  then  fixed  by  law  for  public  lands,  and  these 
constituted  the  main  class  of  pre-emptors. 

April  21,  1806,  it  was  enacted  that  persons  entitled  to  a  right 
of  pre-emption  by  virtue  of  certificate  from  the  commissioners, 
should  be  allowed  until  Jan.  1,  1807,  to  make  the  first  payment, 
when,  if  they  failed  so  to  do,  their  right  became  void.  As  for  those 
without  title  who  were  actual  settlers  in  1798,  they  were  donated 
640  acres  to  each  male  settler  of  full  age.  Finally,  by  act  of  Jan. 
10,  1808,  every  person  the  head  of  a  family  or  of  full  age,  who 
on  March  3,  1807,  actually  inhabited  and  cultivated  a  tract  of  land 
not  claimed  under  a  land  commissioners'  certificate,  and  had  ob- 
tained permission  to  reside  on  the  lands  under  the  act  of  March, 
1807,  should  have  the  right  of  preference  in  becoming  a  purchaser 
of  not  to  exceed  640  acres,  and  be  allowed  until  Jan.  1,  1809,  to 
make  the  first  payment. 

Sept.  19,  1808,  the  Mississippi  house  of  representatives,  F.  L. 
Claiborne,  speaker,  adopted  a  memorial  to  congress,  asking  further 
indulgence  in  making  the  first  payment.  It  was  represented  that 
the  planters  "have  been  cut  oflF  from  every  hope  of  payment  by  an 
act  of  that  government  to  which  they  were  indebted.  It  has  been 
deemed  expedient  to  suspend,  by  embargo,  our  mercantile  opera- 
tions, and  thereby  our  produce  lies,  unsold  and  unsaleable  in  our 
barns.  The  policy  of  this  measure  is  nowhere  admired  more  than 
by  the  people  of  this  territory  .  .  .  but  ...  we  deplore 
the  severe  and  destructive  eflFects  which  will  inevitably  accompany 
the  operations  of  the  law,  if  the  payments  due  to  the  United 
States  are  rigidly  exacted."  The  committee  on  public  lands  re- 
ported adversely  to  the  petition,  saving  the  pre-emptors  already 
had  had  a  longrer  time  for  makiner  their  first  payment  than  other 
purchasers,  and  had  enjoyed  the  selection  of  the  best  lands  without 
competition.  In  March,  1808,  the  first  Choctaw  purchase  was 
ordered  opened  to  sale,  and  thereafter  the  land  office  had  to  deal 
with  the  original  sale  of  land  outside  of  the  historic  ground  of 
Natchez  district,  and  sales  were  made  under  the  general  land  laws 
of  the  United  States. 


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MISSISSIPPI  49 

Under  the  act  of  1808  Thomas  W.  Murray,  of  Virginia,  was 
register,  and  Lemuel  Henry,  receiver,  at  St.  Stephens,  for  the  dis- 
trict east  of  Pearl. 

Before  the  Choctaw  cession  of  1820  there  were  4,792,000  acres  of 
land  sold  in  Mississippi  and  Alabama,  for  $17,656,549,  of  which 
$5,577,057  had  been  paid. 

The  sales  were  about  $150,000  in  1807,  when  they  began;  next 
year,  when  there  was  war  in  prospect,  they  dropped  to  $35,000; 
after  that  they  varied  from  $150,000  to  $300,000  until  1813-15,  the 
war  period,  when  the  annual  sales  were  $60,000,  $82,000  and  $54,- 
000.  Then  in  1816  the  sales  leaped  to  over  $1,000,000,  next  year 
to  $2,000,000,  and  in  1818  to  $3,715,000.  The  sales  in  1819  were, 
however,  unprecedented — $9,700,000,  more  than  half  the  total  from 
1807.  This  was  almost  entirely  in  Alabama,  however,  in  the  new 
Indian  cessions. 

Under  the  act  of  March  3,  1819,  a  land  office  was  established 
at  Jackson  Courthouse,  (county  seat  of  Jackson  county),  to  take 
evidence  regarding  titles  to  land  in  the  coast  region  based  on 
French,  English  and  Spanish  grants.  William  Barton  was  regis- 
ter; William  Barnett,  receiver;  John  Elliott,  clerk  and  interpre- 
ter. These'  officers  also  had  charge  of  the  sale  of  the  lands  in  that 
region,  annexed  in  1812  from  West  Florida  south  of  the  Ellicott 
line  and  east  of  the  Pearl  river.  The  report  for  October  1,  1821, 
was  west  of  Pearl  river  district,  total  lands  in  district,  3,502,080 
acres,  all  surveyed;  Jackson  Courthouse,  2,097,600,  no  surveys; 
east  of  Pearl  river  (Ala.),  6,904,320,  5,253,000  surveyed.  The  re- 
ceipts of  the  Jackson  county  officer  in  1820  were  $13,405 ;  at  Wash- 
ington $90,876;  while  the  receipts  at  Huntsville,  Cahawba,  were 
$407,000,  and  at  St.  Stephens  $67,000. 

By  the  act  of  May  6,  1822,  the  old  district  east  of  Pearl  river 
in  the  first  Choctaw  cession  was  divided,  and  that  part  of  it  in  Mis- 
sissippi was  assigned  to  the  Jackson  county  land  office,  which  was 
removed  to  Augusta.  The  territory  of  this  office  was  then  the 
southeast  comer  of  the  State,  south  of  the  "old  Choctaw  boundary." 
The  same  act  also  created  a  new  district  to  include  the  lands  ceded 
by  the  Choctaws  at  Doak's  Stand  (q.  v.)  in  1820,  estimated  at  over 
5,000,000  acres,  the  land  office  to-be  established  at  such  convenient 
place  as  the  president  might  direct.  The  president  was  authorized 
to  order  all  or  part  of  the  land  surveyed  and  offered  for  sale,  the 
first  sale  to  be  held  at  any  convenient  place  west  of  Pearl  river 
if  so  desired.  To  this  new  district  was  attached  the  lands  east  of 
the  Tombigbee  in  Mississippi,  to  which  the  Indian  title  had  been 
extinguished  in  1816,  and  which  had  belonged  to  the  Madison  coun- 
ty district.  (Ala.) 

In  1822  the  president  appointed  Gideon  Fitz  register,  and  James 
C.  Dickson,  brother  of  David  Dickson,  receiver  for  the  land  of- 
fice at  Jackson.  Surveyor  Freeman  recommended  the  sales  to  be  at 
Washington  or  Port  Gibson,  but  the  legislature  in  December,  1822, 
petitioned  for  sales  at  Jackson,  where  the  first  sale  occurred  in 
November,  1833. 

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50  MISSISSIPPI 

The  act  of  Feb.  22,  1827,  authorized  the  president  to  order  the 
removal  of  "the  land  office  now  located  at  Jackson,"  and  it  was 
accordingly,  changed  to  Mount  Salus,  the  former  home  of  Gov. 
Leake,  (now  Clinton),  upon  request  of  the  legislature. 

Under  the  act  of  1803,  there  was  also  appointed  a  "surveyor  of 
the  lands  of  the  United  States  south  of  Tennessee,"  to  whose 
duties  were  added  the  survey  of  the  lands  of  Orleans  district  in 
1805,  and  the  country  annexed  from  West  Florida  in  1812.  Isaac 
Briggs,  of  Maryland,  was  the  first  surveyor,  appointed  April  7, 
1803.  He  was  succeeded  by  Seth  Pease,  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia, appointed  March  2,  1807,  who  arrived  in  May  of  that  year. 
Thomas  Freeman  was  appointed  Aug.  27,  1810,  and  he  continued 
in  office  until  his  death  in  1821.  His  jurisdiction  was  restricted 
in  1817,  by  the  appointment  of  Gen.  John  Coffee  as  surveyor  in 
the  northern  district  of  Mississippi  territory,  which  district  was 
changed  in  the  following  year  to  Alabama  territory,  leaving  Free- 
man the  surveyor  of  all  public  lands  in  the  State  of  Mississippi. 
Jan.  9,  1822,  Levin  Wailes  was  appointed,  to  succeed  Freeman. 
Joseph  Dunbar,  collector  of  the  revenue  district  was  appointed 
surveyor  in  Jan.,  1830,  vice removed. 

The  report  of  B.  L.  C.  Wailes,  register  at  Washington,  in  July, 
1824,  showed:  Area  of  Natchez  District,  2,031,800  acres;  Subse- 
quent purchases  12,475,000  acres ;  Yet  in  hands  of  Chickasaws  and 
Choctaws,  15,700,000  acres.  The  State  was  divided  into  three 
land  districts,  one  for  the  district  west  of  Pearl,  with  the  land 
office  at  Washington,  and  one  east  of  Pearl,  with  office  at  Augusta, 
and  the  Choctaw  district,  with  the  office  at  Clinton,  where  all 
transactions  were  on  the  cash  basis,  no  debts  or  forfeitures.  In 
the  western  district  the  private  claims  confirmed  by  the  United 
States,  chiefly  British  and  Spanish  grants,  amounted  to  545,480 
acres.  Only  about  one-third  of  the  lands  in  the  district  had  been 
disposed  of,  say  988,000  acres.  The  forfeitures  March  4,  1829, 
were  about  $159,000. 

There  were  six  land  districts,  called  the  Paulding,  the  Columbus, 
the  Washington,  the  Grenada,  the  Jackson,  and  the  Chickasaw 
districts,  with  an  office  at  each  of  the  towns  named,  there  being 
no  separate  office  for  the  Chickasaw  district.  In  1869  all  the 
offices  were  consolidated  in  one  at  Jackson,  with  C.  L.  C.  Cass  as 
receiver  and  Charles  W.  Loomis  register.  The  receivers  since 
Mr.  Cass  have  been  Robert  J.  Alcorn,  A.  H.  Kimball,  John  T. 
Hull,  Wallace  McLaurin,  George  C.  McKee,  Mrs.  A.  H.  McKee, 
R.  W.  Banks,  George  Edward  Matthews,  Isaiah  T.  Montgomery, 
Thomas  B.  McAllister.  The  registers  in  the  same  period  have 
been  R.  C.  Kerr,  James  D.  Stewart,  Henry  Kernagan,  Robert  E. 
Wilson,  James  Hill,  F.  W.  Collins,  L.  Q.  C.  Lamar,  Jr. 

Land  Pre-emption.  James  Madison,  Albert  Gallatin  and  Levi 
Lincoln,  United  States  commissioners  to  make  an  amicable  settle- 
ment with  the  State  of  Georgia,  who,  in  the  performance  of  this 
duty,  arranged  the  Georgia  relinquishment  of  1802,  made  a  report 
to  congress  Feb.  16,  1803,  accompanied  by  a  report  from   Gov. 


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MISSISSIPPI  51 

William  C.  C.  Claiborne,  and  these  statements  of  fact  and  recom- 
mendations theron  were  the  basis  of  the  legislation  upon  land  titles 
and  pre-emption,  so  far  as  the  principles  already  established  were 
adapted  to  this  region.  In  the  report  of  the  commissioners  are  set 
out  the  facts  regarding  the  holding  of  lands  in  the  Natchez  and 
Mobile  districts  by  inhabitants,  at  that  time.  All  who  had  been 
actual  settlers  at  the  time  of  the  signing  of  the  treaty  with  Spain,. 
Oct.  27, 1795,  under  grants  that  had  been  legally  and  fully  executed,, 
whether  from  Great  Britain,  or  Spain  or  the  State  of  Georgia,, 
under  the  Bourbon  county  act,  were  invited  by  the  governor  of  the 
territory  to  exhibit  their  claims  to  the  clerks  of  the  county  courts, 
prior  to  Nov.  1,  1802.  Some  failed  to  do  so,  either  "through  inat- 
tention, or  from  an  unaccomodating  disposition,"  said  Gov.  Clai- 
borne, or  because  a  report  was  put  iyi  circulation  industriously  by 
"some  designing  characters"  that  the  call  for  titles  was  intended  to 
work  injury  to  those  who  had  them.  The  governor  was  of  the 
opinion  that  there  were  not  more  than  350,000  acres  on  the  Missis- 
sippi covered  by  claims  of  this  character,  which  the  government 
was  pledged  to  confirm.  But  there  were  many  people  who  had 
never  completed  their  titles,  and  held  only  the  original  order  to  the 
surveyor  to  survey  land  for  them,  with  or  without  an  actual  survey, 
and  all  of  these  without  any  subsequent  confirmatory  proceedings. 
There  were  also  many  settlers  without  any  evidence  of  title.  Ac- 
cording to  the  governor,  "one  hundred  and  thirty  heads  of  families 
had,  prior  to  October,  1795,  formed  settlements,  without  any  other 
title  but  what  might  be  derived  from  the  Bourbon  act;  and  seven 
hundred  more  have  settled  in  the  country  since  that  time,  (up  to 
1802),  who  either  have  no  title  whatever,  or  rest  their  claims  on 
Spanish  orders  of  survey  and  grants  issued  after  the  date  of  the 
treaty."  Those  of  the  last  description,  who  immigrated  before  the 
Spanish  posts  had  been  evacuated,  urged  their  ignorance  at  first 
of  the  treaty,  and  the  subsequent  acquiescence  of  the  American 
government  in  the  continued  possession  by  the  Spanish  govern- 
ment. The  commissioners  recommended*  that  titles  based  on 
orders  of  survey  be  recognized  in  the  hands  of  actual  settlers  at 
the  critical  day.  The  commissioners  also  advised  the  appointment 
of  a  commission  to  pass  on  the  claims,  and  that  the  right  of  pre- 
emption of  640  acres  be  extended  to  settlers  who  were  weak  in 
title. 

Gov.  Claiborne  urged  that  it  was  fssential  that  the  latter  class 
should  be  protected.  The  heads  of  families  of  this  description,  in 
the  counties  of  Jefferson,  Adams,  Wilkinson  and  Claiborne,  he 
said,  exceed  700  and  their  wives  and  children  to  near  3,000.  "I 
do  sincerely  hope  that  these  citizens  may  be  secured  in  their  im- 
provements, and  that  the  government  will  sell  out  the  vacant  lands 
in  this  district  upon  moderate  terms,  and  in  small  tracts,  to  actual 
settlers."  If  this  were  not  done,  said  the  governor,  much  distress 
would  result,  and  many  of  the  settlers  would  leave  the  territory 
in  disgust,  to  find  more  generous  treatment  beyond  the  Mississippi, 
while  their  farms  would  fall  into  the  hands  of  rich  speculator?. 


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52  MISSISSIPPI 

either  in  the  Natchez  district  or  from  the  United  States.  Thus, 
"the  most  distant  and  infant  settlement  of  the  United  States,  at 
present  insulated  and  defenceless,  would  be  rendered  more  weak 
and  defenceless  by  the  banishment  of  the  poor  class  of  white  citi- 
zens, and  the  introduction  of  a  few  wealthy  characters,  with  a 
large  increase  of  negroes;  a  description  of  inhabitants  already 
formidable  to  our  present  population." 

It  is  to  be  borne  in  mind  that  though  this  region  was  under  the 
United  States  government  from  1798,  it  was  not  decided  who  was 
to  convey  title  to  lands  until  the  Georgia  settlement  of  1802,  and 
then  there  was  nothing  to  convey,  except  in  Natchez  and  Mobile 
districts,  which  had  long  been  relinquished  by  the  Indians,  until 
the  Indians  were  persuaded  to  cede  more  lands.  The  vacant  lands 
alluded  to  by  the  governor  were  in  the  district  of  Natchez,  or  the 
upper  district  of  Mobile,  as  they  were  definitely  bounded  under  the 
British  administration  of  West  Florida. 

The  act  of  congress  of  March  3,  1803,  conformed  to  the  main 
recommendations  of  the  commissioners  and  the  governor.  In- 
complete claims  on  orders  of  survey  were  to  be  confirmed  the 
same  as  if  completed,  if  made  by  actual  inhabitants  and  cultivators 
on  Oct.  27,  1795. 

Besides,  any  one  being  of  legal  age  or  the  head  of  a  family  on 
that  day,  who  did  actually  inhabit  or  cultivate,  without  title  from 
Spain  or  Great  Britain,  a  tract  of  land  in  the  territory,  not  claimed 
under  some  grant  protected  by  the  terms  of  the  Georgia  cession, 
should  be  donated  not  to  exceed  640  acres. 

Also,  any  person  of  legal  age  or  the  head  of  a  family,  being 
on  March  3,  1803,  the  inhabitor  or  cultivator  of  a  tract  of  land  not 
claimed  by  others  as  already  specified,  or  by  a  British  g^ant,  or 
subject  to  the  claims  protected  in  the  Greorgia  cession,  was  assured 
of  a  preference  in  becoming  the  purchaser  from  the  United  States, 
at  the  regular  price. 

These  were  the  three  classes  of  actual  settlers  of  small  bodies 
of  land,  protected  by  the  United  States  law  against  loss  of  their 
property,  though  they  were  annoyed  for  some  years  afterward  by 
the  pretensions  of  non-resident  British  claimants. 

The  register  of  the  Land  office,  created  by  the  same  act  of  1803, 
with  two  other  persons  appointed  by  the  president  constituted  the 
commission  recommended  by  Madison  to  receive  and  hear  testi- 
mony regarding  claims.  Where  they  were  satisfied  that  the  claim- 
ant was  entitled  to  land  unSer  the  Georgia  agreement,  in  virtue 
of  a  British  and  Spanish  grant  fully  executed,  they  so  certified, 
and  the  certificate  being  recorded  by  the  register  of  the  land  office, 
served  the  purpose  of  a  deed  from  the  United  States.  Similar 
certificates  were  given  upon  sufficient  proof  of  claims  under  the 
Bourbon  county  act,  or  claims  of  the  two  classes  of  inhabitants 
in  October,  1795,  which  entitled  the  claimant  to  a  patent  from  the 
United  States.  Where  the  pre-emption  right  was  claimed,  the 
certificate  entitled  the  claimant  to  become  the  purchaser,  provided 


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MISSISSIPPI  53 

he  entered  his  certificate  with  the  register  by  Jan.  1,  1805,  and 
paid  a  fourth  of  the  purchase  money  and  expenses,  by  Jan.  1,  1806. 

The  final  report  of  the  land  office  in  regard  to  these  claims  exist- 
ing when  the  law  of  1803  went  into  force,  was  that  up  to  July, 
1807,  to  which  limit  the  time  for  making  proof  was  extended,  from 
time  to  time,  there  had  been  entered  819  certificates  founded  on  ^ 
British  and  Spanish  patents;  which  entries  made  a  perfect  title 
in  those  cases.  Besides,  there  were  300  cases  in  which  patents 
were  to  be  issued,  without  any  payment  of  purchase;  money  to  be 
required,  under  the  first  provision  of  the  law  of.  1803,  to  holders 
of  survey  warrants  and  such  like  imperfect  titles,  who  were  occu- 
pants at  various  dates  from  1787  up  to  March  30,  1798.  There  had 
also  been  345  pre-emption  claims  filed.  Titles  in  sixteen  cases  were 
clouded  by  conflicting  British  claims  and  seven  pre-emption  claims 
were  clouded  in  the  same  manner. 

The  pre-emption  claims  were  generally  under  640  acres.  Four 
of  them  were  in  excess,  one  of  these  being  the  claim  of  Peter  B. 
Bruin  for  1,160  acres  on  Bayou  Pierre. 

Land  Titles,  French.  The  French  land  titles  generally  ceased 
with  the  English  ocupation  of  1763.  D'Abbadie,  commandant  at 
New  Orleans,  wrote  the  French  government  January  10,  1764: 
"Immediately  after  the  delivering  up  of  Mobile  to  Mr.  Farmer, 
who  took  possession  of  it  in  the  name  of  his  Britanic  Majesty, 
this  officer  issued  a  captious  decree,  which  is  calculated  to  produce 
the  greatest  anxiety  in  the  minds  of  the  French  inhabitants.  (1) 
He  requires  the  French  inhabitants  to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance 
within  three  months,  if  they  wish  to  be  protected  in  their  prop- 
erty. What  right  has  he  to  impose  any  such  obligation  on  those  in- 
habitants, since  the  treaty  grants  them  a  delay  of  eighteen  months 
to  emigrate,  if  they  choose,  and  since  it  is  stipulated  that  they  shall 
be,  under  no  pretext,  subjected  to  any  restraint  whatsoever?  (2) 
The  French  inhabitants  are  prohibited  from  disposing  of  any  land 
or  real  estate,  until  their  titles  thereto  are  verified,  registered  and 
approved  by  the  commanding  officer.  No  titles  are  accepted  as 
good,  except  those  which  are  founded  on  concessions  in  due  form, 
given  by  the  governors  and  the  Intendant  Commissary  of  New 
Orleans,  when,  on  account  of  the  small  number  of  inhabitants,  and 
of  the  immense  extent  of  public  lands,  the  mere  fact  of  taking  p>os- 
session  and  the  continuation  of  it,  on  permission  given  to  select 
a  tract  of  land  and  to  clear  it  of  its  timber,  has  always  been  looked 
upon  as  a  sufficient  title." 

Landon,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Harrison  county, 
on  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,  5  miles  by  rail  north  of  Gulfport. 

Langford,  a  postoffice  of  Rankin  county,  5  miles  north  of  Brandon, 
the  county  seat,  and  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town. 

Langley,  a  postoffice  in  the  north-central  part  of  Attala  county. 
12  miles  north  of  Kosciusko,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest  railroad 
and  banking  town. 

Langsdale,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Clarke 
county,  about  15  miles  southeast  of  Quitman,  the  county  seat,  and 


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54  MISSISSIPPI 

8  miles  east  of  Shubuta,  the  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town. 
Population  in  1900,  36. 

Lantrip,  a  postoffice  of  Calhoun  county. 

Lapanto,  a  postoffice  of  Yazoo  county. 

L' Argent,  a  post-hamlet  of  Sharkey  county,  situated  near  the 
mouth  of  Big  Sunflower  river,  about  25  miles  southeast  of  Rolling 
Fork,  the  county  seat.     Population  in  1906,  25. 

Larue,  a  hamlet  in  the  western  part  of  Jackson  county,  about 
22  miles  northwest  of  Pascagoula,  the  county  seat.  It  has  a  money 
order  postoffice. 

La  Salle,  Robert  Cavelier  de.  La  Salle's  chief  title  to  enduring 
fame  lies  in  his  famous  journey  of  exploration  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Mississippi  river  in  1682.  He  was  born  at  Rouen,  France,  and 
educated  at  a  Jesuit  seminary.  While  still  a  young  man,  he  went 
to  Canada  to  seek  his  fortune,  and  was  patronized  by  M.  Talon, 
the  Intendant.  For  his  eminent  services  in  the  exploration  of  the 
Canadian  lakes,  he  was  rewarded  with  a  patent  of  nobility  by  king 
Louis,  on  the  occasion  of  a  visit  to  France  in  1675.  In  1678  he  was 
commissioned  to  undertake  the  exploration  of  the  Mississippi  and 
was  issued  the  following  patent: 

"Louis,  by  the  Grace  of  God,  King  of  France  and  Navarre :  To 
Our  Dear  and  Well  Beloved  Robert  Cavelier,  Sieur  de  La  Salle, 
Greeting: 

"We  have  received  with  favor  the  very  humble  petition,  which 
has  been  presented  to  us  in  your  name,  to  permit  you  to  endeavor 
to  discover  the  western  part  of  New  France;  and  we  have  con- 
sented to  this  proposal  the  more  willingly,  because  there  is  noth- 
ing we  have  more  at  heart  than  the  discovery  of  this  country, 
through  which  it  is  probable  a  road  may  be  found  to  penetrate 
to  Mexico ;  and  because  your  diligence  in  clearing  lands  which  we 
granted  to  you  by  the  decree  of  our  council  of  the  13th  of  May, 
1675,  and  by  Letters  Patent  of  the  same  date,  to  form  habitations 
upon  the  said  lands,  and  to  put  Fort  Frontenac  in  a  good  state  of 
defense,  the  seigniory  and  government  whereof  we  likewise  grant- 
ed to  you,  afford  us  every  reason  to  hope  that  you  will  succeed  to 
our  satisfaction  and  to  the  advantages  of  our  subjects  of  the  said 
country. 

"For  these  reasons,  and  others  thereunto  moving  us,  we  have  per- 
mitted and  do  hereby  permit  you  by  these  presents,  signed  by  our 
hand,  tp  endeavor  to  discover  the  western  part  of  New  France, 
and  for  the  execution  of  this  enterprise  to  construct  forts  wher- 
ever you  shall  deem  it  necessary ;  which  it  is  our  will  that  you  shall 
hold  on  th«  same  terms  and  conditions  as  Fort  Frontenac,  agree- 
ably and  conformably  to  our  Letters  Patent  on  the  13th  of  March, 
1675,  which  we  have  confirmed  as  far  as  is  needful,  and  hereby 
confirm  by  these  presents.  And  it  is  our  pleasure  that  they  be  exe- 
cuted according  to  their  form  and  tenor. 

"To  accomplish  this  and  everything  above  mentioned  we  give 
you  full  powers;  on  condition,  however,  that  you  shall  finish  this 
enterprise  within  five  years,  in  default  of  which  these  presents  shall 


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MISSISSIPPI  .  55 

be  void  and  of  no  effect ;  that  you  carry  on  no  trade  whatever  with 
the  savages  called  Outaouacs  and  others  who  bring  their  beaver 
skins  and  other  peltries  to  Montreal ;  and  that  the  whole  shall  be 
done  at  your  expense  and  that  of  your  company,  to  which  we  have 
granted  the  privilege  of  the  trade  in  buffalo  skins.  And  we  com- 
mand the  Sieur  de  Frontenac,  our  Governor  and  Lieutenant-Gen- 
eral,  and  the  Sieur  Duchesne,  Intendant,  and  the  other  officers  who 
compose  the  supreme  council  of  the  said  country,  to  affix  their  sig- 
natures to  these  presents;  for  such  is  our  pleasure.  Given  at  St. 
Germaine  en  Laye,  this  12th  day  of  May,  1678,  and  of  our  reign 
the  thirty-fifth. 

"(Signed)  Louis." 

It  will  be  noted  that  the  king  seems  to  have  had  no  higher  motive 
than  to  permit  LaSalle  to  explore  the  western  part  of  New  France 
at  his  own  risk  and  expense.  France  would  benefit  mightily  from 
the  projected  voyage,  both  in  knowledge  and  territory.  La  Salle 
must  find  his  recompense  in  the  "privilege  of  the  trade  in  buffalo 
skins"  and  the  seigniory  of  the  forts  established  and  the  settlements 
which  might  be  expected  to  spring  up  about  thepi.  It  was  not 
known  that  the  Mississippi  flowed  into  the  Gulf  and  not  into  the 
South  Sea ;  forts  established  along  its  course  cemented  the  owner- 
ship of  France.  LaSalle  saw  the  possibilities  in  this  great  and 
fertile  valley  and  expected  to  establish  on  a  firm  basis  the  claim 
of  France  to  a  splendid  new  empire.  He  was  just  the  man  to  un- 
dertake this  great  work.  Endowed  with  extraordinary  capacity, 
tact  and  perseverance,  and  indomitable  courage,  he  finally  arrived 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  on  the  9th  of  April,  1682.  He  then 
ascended  a  short  distance  to  a  considerable  elevation  and  with  all 
possible  ceremony  planted  the  cross  and  raised  the  arms  of  France 
together  with  the  inscription:  "Louis  Le  Grand,  Roi,  de  France 
et  de  Navarre,  Regne:  Le  Nouvieme  April,  1682."  Then  after 
chanting  the  hymn  of  the  church  "Vexalla  Regis"  and  the  "Te 
Deum,"  in  the  name  of  his  majesty,  he  took  possession  of  the 
Mississippi  river,  of  all  rivers  that  enter  it  and  of  all  the  country 
watered  by  them,  and  called  the  country  Louisiana.  The  narrative 
of  Father  Membre  recites:  "An  authentic  act  was  drawn  up, 
signed  by  all  of  us  there,  and  amid  a  volley  from  all  our  muskets, 
a  leaden  plate  inscribed  with  the  arms  of  France,  and  the  names 
of  those  who  had  just  made  the  discovery,  was  deposited  in  the 
earth." 

Detailed  accounts  of  this  famous  voyage  have  been  fortunately 
preserved  to  us  in  the  narratives  and  memoirs  of  De  Tonty,  Father 
Membre,  and  other  members  of  the  expedition.  (See  His.  Coll. 
of  La.,  By  B.  F.  French). 

Once  more  LaSalle  returned  to  France.  The  great  French  Min- 
ister, Colbert,  was  now  no  more,  and  his  son,  Seignelay.  was  Min- 
ister of  Marine.  To  him  he  delivers  two  memoirs,  the  one  his 
official  account  of  the  taking  possession  of  Louisiana,  and  the  other 
urging  an  expedition  by  sea  to  the  Mississippi,  with  a  memorandum 
of  the  equipment  and  supplies  necessary  to  undertake  it.    He  was 


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56  .  MISSISSIPPI 

duly  authorized  to  build  forts  and  plant  colonies  in  Louisiana  and 
fitted  out  an  expedition  of  four  ships,  and  280  persons,  including 
Father  Zenobe,  and  M.  Joutel,  the  future  historian  of  the  expedi- 
tion. This  expedition  sailed  on  the  24th  of  July,  1684,  reached  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico  in  the  following  December,  but  missed  the  mouth 
of  the  Mississippi,  and  LaSalle  was  compelled  to  effect  a  landing 
in  the  bay  of  St.  Bernard,  where  he  built  a  fort.  He  made  a  num- 
ber of  attempts  to  find  the  Mississippi,  and  during  the  last  one  was 
assassinated  by  one  of  his  countrymen,  on  one  of  the  branches  of 
the  Trinity,  March  20,  1687.  In  this  inglorious  manner  died  the 
man  who  has  been  styled  the  "Father  of  French  Colonization  in 
the  Mississippi  Valley."  Says  Sparks,  "To  him  must  be  mainly 
ascribed  the  discovery  of  the  vast  regions  of  the  Mississippi  Val- 
ley, and  the  subsequent  occupation  and  settlement  of  them  by  the 
French;  and  his  name  justly  holds  a  prominent  place  among  those 
which  adorn  the  history  of  civilization  in  the  new  world." 

Latonia,  a  post-village  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Jackson  county, 
on  the  boundary  line  between  Mississippi  and  Alabama,  about  35 
miles  north  of  Pascagoula,  the  county  seat.  It  is  on  the  right  bank 
of  the  Escatawpa  river,  and  is  a  prosperous  station  on  the  Mobile, 
Jackson  &  Kansas  City  R.  R.    Population  in  1900,  200. 

Latourette's  Map.  The  first  of  the  modem  maps  of  Mississippi 
was  published  by  Latourette  in  1840.  Gov.  McNutt  recommended 
the  purchase  of  200  by  the  legislature. 

Lattimore,  William,  was  born  at  Norfolk,  Va.,  Feb.  9,  1774; 
after  an  academic  education  he  prepared  for  the  practice  of  medi- 
cine, and  with  his  brother,  David,  also  a  physician,  came  to  Nat- 
chez in  1801.  In  1802  they  were  given  charge  of  the  small-pox 
camp  established  by  Gov.  Claiborne,  also  of  the  vaccination  oFltte— 
inhabitants.  David  Lattimore,  in  1802,  was  appointed  a  member 
of  the  Territorial  council  by  President  Jefferson,  to  succeed  Aciam 
Bingaman.  On  March  12,  1803,  William  Lattimore  was  elected 
by  the  general  assembly  as  delegate  in  congress  to  succeed  Thomas 
M.  Green.  In  communicating  this  to  Secretary  Madison,  Gov. 
Claiborne  wrote:  "Doctor  Lattimore  is  a  young  man  of  promis- 
ing talents  and  a  firm  and  genuine  republican."  He  was  reelected 
in  1805.  In  1807  and  1809  George  Poindexter  was  chosen  as  dele- 
gate, and  upon  his  declining  to  serve  longer,  Dr.  Lattimore  was 
again  elected,  in  1813  and  1815,  serving  until  the  State  was  ad- 
mitted. His  election  in  1813  was  by  a  plurality  over  Cowels  Mead 
and  Thomas  B.  Reed,  and  was  a  victory  for  the  Whig  element. 
Marschalk  wrote  of  him  at  this  time :  "Modest,  fond  of  retirement 
and  confident  of  the  good  sense  and  justness  of  his  fellow-citizens, 
he  has  been  always  willing  to  rest  his  services  and  reputation  in 
the  hands  of  a  generous  and  discriminating  public."  In  1817  he 
was  a  member  of  the  constitutional  convention,  in  1819  was  ap- 
pointed one  of  the  seven  censors  of  the  medical  profession,  under 
the  law  of  that  period,  and  in  1823  he  was  an  unsuccessful  can- 
didate for  governor  against  Walter  Leake. 

He  was  the  head  of  a  party  that  deprecated  the  early  discussion 


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MISSISSIPPI  57 

of  a  division  of  the  territory  and  statehood.  When  division  was 
inevitable,  "his  project  was  to  follow  the  Choctaw  boundary  east- 
erly, from  the  northwest  corner  of  Washington  county  to  the 
Tombigbee,  thence  up  that  river  to  Cottongin  port,  thence  north 
to  Bear  Creek.  It  is  very  evident,  from  his  whole  course  in  this 
matter,  that  this  intelligent  and  conscientious  man  intended  to 
represent  the  v^hole  territory  fairly  in  this  and  all  other  matters. 
But  a  terrible  howl  was  made  in  the  west  against  his  surrender  of 
the  only  seaport  (Mobile),  and  of  the  Tombigbee,  and  he  was  not 
only  defeated,  but  never  recovered  his  popularity,  though  no  man 
had  served  the  Territory  with  more  fidelity.  And  in  private  life, 
of  all  our  public  men,  he  had  ever  been  the  most  exemplary  and 
tinimpeachable."  (Claibori>e's  Mississippi.)  Both  brothers  "were 
men  of  sense  and  cultivajfion  and  wrote  and  spoke  fluently  and 
forcibly.  In  private  life  they  were  greatly  beloved.  William  Lat- 
timore  settled  in  that  part  of  Wilkinson  which  subsequently  be- 
came the  county  of  Amite.  .  .  .  His  last  public  service  was 
as  commissioner,  in  connection  with  Gen.  Thomas  Hinds  and 
Judge  Peter  A.  VanDorn,  to  select  a  site  for  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment for  the  State.  They  selected  the  site  of  tjie  present  city  of 
Jackson.  Dr.  William  Lattimore  died  in  Amite  county,  April  3, 
1843." 

Lauderdale,  an  incorporated  post-town  in  the  northeastern  part 
of  Lauderdale  county,  on  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.,  18  miles  north- 
cast  of  Meridian,  the  nearest  banking  town.  Wild  Horse  creek,  an 
affluent  of  the  Tombigbee,  flows  one  mile  north  of  the  town.  Like 
the  county,  it  received  its  name  in  honor  of.  Col.  James  Lauderdale. 
It  has  a  money  order  postofiice,  several  stores,  two  churches  and  a 
grist  mill.    Population  in  1900,  288. 

Lauderdale  County,  one  of  the  richest  and  most  populous  counties 
in  the  State,  was  established  December  23,  1833,  while  Charles 
Lynch  was  acting-governor.  It  has  a  land  surface  of  677 
square  miles,  and  is  located  about  the  middle  of  the  eastern  border 
of  the  State  next  to  the  Alabama  line.  It  received  its  name  in 
honor  of  Col.  James  Lauderdale,  of  the  War  of  1812.  By  the 
original  act  it  embraced  "all  the  territory  within  townships  5,  6, 
7  and  8,  of  ranges  14,  15,  16,  17,  18  and  19,"  and  has  an  area  of 
about  19  townships.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  county  of 
Kemper,  on  the  east  by  Sumter  county,  Ala.,  on  the  south  by  Clarke 
county,  and  on  the  west  by  Newton  county.  Its  early  county  seat 
was  located  at  Marion  until  1866 ;  at  Marion  Station  from  1866  to 
1870 ;  it  was  then  removed  to  Meridian,  the  present  county  seat.  In 
addition  to  the  old  county  seat  of  Marion,  the  towns  of  Alamutcha 
and  Daleville,  and  the  villages  of  Sageville  and  Chunkeyville,  were 
settled  at  a  very  early  date  in  the  history  of  the  county.  All  four 
towns  are  now  extinct.  Alamutcha  was  once  an  Indian  village, 
situated  not  far  from  Kewanee.  Daleville  is  now  known  as  Lizelia, 
and  was  about  10  miles  northwest  of  Meridian ;  it  was  named  for 
Gen.  Sam  Dale,  who  first  settled  there.  A  few  miles  distant  is 
Cooper  Institute,  now  known  as  Daleville.    Sageville  was  near  the 


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58  MISSISSIPPI 

present  station  of  Okatibbee,  on  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R. ;  E.  J. 
Rew  and  Abram  Burwell  were  citizens  of  the  old  village.  Chunkey- 
ville  was  absorbed  by  Chunkey  Station,  on  the  Alabama  &  Vicks- 
burg  R.  R.  Before  the  War,  Lauderdale  Springs  was  a  popular 
health  resort.  No  city  in  the  State  can  show  a  more  remarkable 
growth  since  the  War  than  Meridian.  Up  to  1854,  it  was  a  junction 
point,  whose  very  name  was  in  dispute ;  in  1866,  its  first  factory  was 
established — a  foundry  and  machine  shop. .  Its  growth  was  then 
steady,  being  only  interrupted  by  a  number  of  disastrous  fires,  and 
by  the  great  fever  epidemic  of  1878.  There  were  22  manufacturing 
establishments  in  1890 ;  119  in  1900,  showing  a  gain  in  one  decade  of 
440.9  per  cent.  Today  it  is  the  largest  manufacturing  center  in 
the  State  according  to  the  twelfth  census,  and  contains  a  popula- 
tion which  was  estimated  at  25,000  in  1906,  having  passed  Vicks- 
burg  since  the  last  census.  It  is  the  most  important  railroad  center 
in  the  eastern  part  of  the  State,  and  is  the  junction  of  the  Mobile 
&  Ohio,  New  Orleans  &  North  Eastern,  Alabama  &  Vicksburg, 
Alabama  Great  Southern,  and  the  St.  Louis  &  San  Francisco  rail- 
roads. The  last  named  road  runs  its  trains  into  the  city  over 
leased  lines.  The  State's  East  Mississippi  Insane  Hospital  is 
located  at  Meridian,  which  was  also  the  seat  of  the  East  Mississippi 
Female  College,  recently  destroyed  by  fire,  and  now  succeeded  by 
the  Meridian  Female  College  and  Conservatory  of  Music.  The 
Meridian  Male  College  is  another  excellent  school  located  here. 
Some  of  the  other  towns  in  the  county — all  of  them  small  in  size — 
are  Lauderdale,  Lockhart,  Marion  Station,  Toomsuba,  Russell, 
Arundel,  Savoy,  Meehan  Junction,  Graham,  Kewanee,  Lost  Gap, 
and  Bonita,  which  are  railroad  towns,  and  Daleville,.  Obadiah, 
Morrow,  Post  and  Increase,  interior  villages  away  from  the  rail- 
roads. The  superior  transportation  facilities  of  the  county,  afforded 
by  the  numerous  roads  which  cross  its  borders,  and  its  great  natural 
advantages  of  soil,  climate  and  forests,  assure  to  this  county  a 
continuance  of  its  remarkable  growth  in  wealth  and  prosperity. 
It  is  well  watered  by  numerous  small  creeks  and  streams,  which 
are  for  the  most  part  head  waters  of  the  Chickasawhay  river,  or 
small  branches  of  the  Tombigbee,  and  it  is  well  timbered  with 
pine,  oak,  hickory,  gum,  beech,  chestnut,  poplar  and  sycamore, 
which  are  being  rapidly  worked  up  by  its  numerous  mills  and  fac- 
tories. It  is  one  of  the  few  counties  in  the  State  where  the  value 
of  the  manufactured  products  is  greatly  in  excess  of  that  of  the 
farms.  The  soil,  however,  produces  good  crops  of  cotton,  com, 
sugar-cane,  oats,  peas,  potatoes,  vegetables  and  fruits  of  all  kinds, 
the  last  two  items  being  extensively  raised  for  market,  and  the  live 
stock  industry  is  in  a  flourishing  condition. 

The  following  statistics  taken  from  the  last  United  States  census 
for  1900,  will  prove  interesting  as  an  illustration  of  the  resources 
at  that  time  of  Lauderdale  county :  Number  of  farms,  3,358 ;  acreage 
in  farms,  315,542;  acres  improved,  130,159;  value  of  the  land  ex- 
clusive of  buildings,  $1,616,880;  value  of  the  buildings,  $675,930; 
value  of  the  live  stock,  $623,959,  and  total  value  of  farm  products 


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MISSISSIPPI  59 

not  fed,  $1,388,146.  Number  of  manufacturing  establishments, 
194;  capital  invested,  $2,128,954;  wages  paid,  $613,112;  cost  of  ma- 
terials, $1,818,306,  and  total  value  of  products,  $3,292,923.  The 
population  of  the  county  in  1900,  consisted  of  whites,  19,190; 
colored,  18,960,  a  total  of  38,150  and  an  increase  of  8,489  over  the 
year  1890.  The  population  in  1906,  was  estimated  at  45,000. 
The  total  assessed  valuation  of  real  and  personal  property  in  the 
county  in  1905  was  $8,755,762  and  in  1906  it  was  $11,515,689,  show- 
ing an  increase  of  $2,759,927  during  the  year.  Artesian  water  is 
found  in  the  county,  there  being  several  flowing  wells.  The  county 
is  taking  a  great  interest  in  its  public  highways. 

Laura,  a  postoffice  of  Montgomery  county,  10  miles  northeast  of 
Winona,  the  county  seat. 

Laurdy  a  thriving  town  in  Jones  county,  7  miles  northeast  of 
Ellisville,  the  county  seat.  The  name  was  derived  from  the  dense 
laurel  thickets  growing  within  its  limits.  It  is  the  junction  point 
for  three  railroads :  the  New  Orleans  &  North  Eastern,  the  Mobile, 
Jackson  &  Kansas  City,  and  the  Laurel  branch  of  the  Gulf  &  Ship 
Island.  It  is  watered  by  the  Tallahalla  creek,  an  excellent  logging 
stream.  The  manufacturing  of  lumber  is  the  chief  industry.  It 
has  four  large  saw  mills,  a  wagon  factory,  a  machine  shop  and 
foundry,  a  large  brick  plant,  a  cotton  compress,  a  cotton  mill,  and 
an  oil  mill.  The  Bank  of  Laurel,  now  the  First  National  Bank, 
was  established  here  in  1899  with  a  capital  of  $60,000 ;  the  Peoples 
Bank,  now  the  Commercial  Bank  &  Trust  Co.,  was  established  in 
1900  with  a  capital  of  $20,000.  The  Chronicle,  a  semi-weekly,  Dem- 
ocratic newspaper,  edited  by  A.  W.  Noble,  was  established  in  1897 ; 
and  the  Ledger,  a  Democratic  weekly  edited  by  W.  R.  Hardy,  was 
established  in  1902.  Few  towns  in  the  State  have  had  a  more  rapid 
growth  within  recent  years.  Its  population  in  1900  had  reached 
3,193,  and  in  1906,  the  population  was  at  least  5,000.  It  has  ex- 
cellent schools,  having  five  public  school  buildings  for  white  scholars 
and  one  building  for  colored  people.  The  capacity  of  the  central 
public  school  building  has  recently  been  doubled. 

Laurelhill,  a  hamlet  in  the  western  part  of  Neshoba  county,  12 
miles  west  of  Philadelphia,  the  county  seat.  The  postoffice  at  this 
place  was  discontinued  in  1905,  and  it  now  has  rural  free  delivery 
from  Madden.    Population  in  1900,  48. 

Law,  John,  See  Western  Company. 

Lawrence,  a  post-village  of  Newton  county,  on  the  Alabama  & 
Vicksburg  R.  R.,  60  miles  east  of  Jackson,  and  10  miles  southwest 
of  Decatur,  the  county  seat.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice,  sev- 
eral general  stores,  two  churches  and  a  grist  mill.  Population  in 
1900,  75;  the  population  in  1906  was  estimated  at  125. 

Lawrence  County  was  one  of  the  fourteen  territorial  counties 
represented  in  the  Constitutional  Convention  of  1817,  and  was 
created  December  22,  1814,  from  the  older  county  of  Marion, 
originally  embracing  within  its  area  all  the  eastern  half  of  the 
present  county  of  Lincoln.  The  original  act  defined  its  boundaries 
as  follows:     "Beginning  on  the  Franklin  county  line,  where  the 


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60  MISSISSIPPI 

middle  section  of  the  fifth  township  intersects  the  same;  thence 
east  along  the  said  line  to  its  intersection  with  the  eastern  boundary 
line  of  the  county  of  Marion.  And  all  that  tract  of  country  on 
the  north  side  of  said  line,  and  within  the  original  boundary  of 
Marion  county,  shall  form  a  county,  known  by  the  name  of  Law- 
rence." Its  original  area  was  about  1,000  square  miles.  By  act 
of  January  5,  1819,  it  contributed  of  its  eastern  area  to  form  the 
county  of  Covington  (q.  v.),  and  February  12th,  of  the  same  year, 
it  surrendered  to  Marion  county  the  northern  half  of  township  5, 
ranges  17  and  18 ;  in  1870,  it  contributed  of  its  western  area  to  form 
the  new  county  of  Lincoln  (q.  v.).  The  present  area  of  the  county 
is  414,382  acres,  or  638  square  miles.  For  a  period  of  five  years 
county  courts  were  held  at  the  house  of  Wright  Mitchell,  and  then 
a  rude  log  court  house  was  built  on  the  site  of  the  present  build- 
ing: Harmon  Runnels,  Chief  Justice  of  the  Quorum;  Stephen 
Noble,  J.  Q. ;  Benjamin  Goodson,  J.  Q. ;  James  Stigler,  J.  Q. ; 
Harmon  M.  Runnels,  Clerk,  and  Hardin  D.  Runnels,  Sheriff,  con- 
stituted the  first  court  as  organized  March  6,  1815.  The  civil 
officers  of  the  county  in  1818  were  as  follows:  George  W.  King, 
Chief  Justice  of  the  Quorum,  and  John  Reagan  and  Eli  Garner, 
Justices  of  the  Quorum;   Samuel  Alexander,   Randolph  Traylor, 

Fort  Alfred,  Warner,   Francis   Ross,   Harper   Garner,  Alex. 

Hall,  Jesse  Maxwell,  Wm.  Smith,  Sr.,  Samuel  Pepper,  Joseph  Hart, 
Francis  Tilman,  Thomas  Ship,  Arthur  Fox,  John  N.  Field,  Justices 
of  the  Peace;  John  Burney,  Assessor  and  Collector;  Harper  Garner, 
County  Surveyor;  Wylie  Bohahnon,  County  Treasurer;  Jonathan 
Armstrong,  Leonard   Green,  Wm.  D.  Hathorn,  Thos.  P.  Honea, 

Thos.    Matthews,  Phillips,   Parish    Garner,   Ezekiel    Loften, 

William  Mallet,  Constables.  The  county  was  named  in  commem- 
oration of  James  Lawrence,  captain  of  the  Chesapeake  in  the 
memorable  battle  with  the  British  on  Lake  Erie.  Its  northern 
boundary  is  the  old  Choctaw  boundary  line  of  1805,  separating  it 
from  Copiah  and  Simpson  counties  on  the  north,  Covington  county 
is  on  the  east,  Marion  and  Pike  counties  on  the  south,  and  Lincoln 
county  on  the  west.  It  is  an  old  settled  region  in  the  south  central 
part  of  the  State,  and  its  hardy  and  vigorous  pioneers  contributed 
largely  to  the  early  beginnings  of  Mississippi.  The  little  village 
of  Monticello,  with  a  population  of  500  and  situated  on  a  high  bluff 
on  the  western  bank  of  the  Pearl  river,  is  the  county  seat;  it  was 
the  home  of  Harmon  Runnels,  Hiram  G.,  Harmon  M.  and  Hardin 
D.  Runnels,  his  sons.  Harmon  Runnels  came  to  the  State  from 
Georgia,  built  the  first  house  in  Monticello  and  was  a  forceful 
representative  in  the  constitutional  convention  of  1817.  He  reared 
a  large  family,  which  became  influential  in  the  annals  of  the  State. 
Hiram  G.  Runnels,  one  of  the  sons,  became  Governor  of  the  State 
in  1833.  There  are  no  large  settlements  in  Lawrence  county,  the 
more  important  ones  being  Monticello,  the  county  seat,  and  the 
railroad  towns  of  Grange,  Hebron,  Prentiss  and  Silvercreek.  The 
county  is  well  watered  by  the  Pearl  river  which  flows  through  the 
center,  together  with  its  numerous  tributaries.    Pearl  river  is  navi- 


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MISSISSIPPI  61 

gable  for  steamboats  and  is  extensively  used  for  shipping  purposes 
and  in  lumbering  operations.  The  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R., 
crosses  the  county  from  north  to  south,  the  Mississippi  Central  R. 
R.,  enters  the  county  from  the  east,  and  passes  through  westward 
crossing  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,  at  Silvercreek.  A  short 
spur  of  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  from  .Brookhaven,  enters  the 
northwestern  part  of  the  county  and  extends  to  Monticello, 
and  the  N.  C.  &  M.  R.  R.  enters  its  southwestern  comer. 
The  timber  growth  of  the  county  is  chiefly  of  the  long  leaf  or  yellow 
pine  variety  and  is  of  an  excellent  quality.  The  general  surface  of 
the  region  is  undulating  and  hilly,  and  level  on  the  river  and  creek 
bottoms.  The  low  lands  are  very  fertile;  on  the  uplands  the  soil 
is  sandy  and  needs  fertilizing.  In  common  with  most  of  the 
southern  counties  in  the  long  leaf  pine  region,  there  are  extensive 
areas  of  "reed-brakes,"  which,  when  drained  and  cultivated,  can  be 
made  to  yield  bounteously.  The  products  of  Lawrence  county  are 
cotton,  corn,  rice,  sugar-cane,  sorghum,  potatoes  and  all  the  fruits 
and  vegetables  which  grow  in  the  temperate  zone.  There  is  plenty 
of  good  pasturage,  winter  and  summer,  and  many  have  engaged  in 
stock  raising  and  sheep  husbandry. 

The  twelfth  United  States  census  for  1900  shows  that  there  were 
in  the  county  2,510  farms,  acreage  in  farms  276,683,  acres  improved 
92,662,  value  of  the  land  without  the  buildings  $810,010,  value  of 
buildings  $386,610,  value  of  live  stock  $461,692,  total  value  of 
products  not  fed  $974,152.  The  number  of  manufactures  was  43, 
capital  $59,061,  wages  paid  $13,075,  cost  of  materials  $24,528  and 
total  value  of  manufactured  products  $63,975. 

The  population  of  the  county  in  1900  consisted  of  7,535  whites, 
7,568  colored,  a  total  of  15,103,  or  2,785  more  than  given  by  the 
census  returns  for  1890.  The  manufacturing  interests  of  the  county 
have  increased  at  least  500  per  cent,  in  the  last  five  years.  The 
total  assessed  valuation  of  real  and  personal  property  in  the  county 
in  1905  was  $2,687,068  and  in  1906  it  was  $3,631,197,  which  shows  an 
increase  during  the  year  of  $944,129.  The  completion  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi Central  and  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  railroads  through  the 
county  has  Opened  up  an  extensive  area  of  valuable  timber  lands, 
and  saw  mills  are  to  be  found  every  few  miles  along  these  lines. 

Lawshilly  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Marshall  county, 
about  15  miles  southwest  of  Holly  Springs.    Population  in  1900,  20. 

Lazarus,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southeastern  corner  of  Harrison 
county,  situated  on  the  Back  Bay  of  Biloxi,  2  miles  north  of  Biloxi. 

Leaf,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Greene  county, 
on  the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas  City  R.  R.,  18  miles  southwest 
of  Leakesville,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  37. 

Leake  County  was  established  December  23,  1833,  and  was  one 
of  the  sixteen  counties  created  at  that  time  from  the  final  cession 
of  the  Choctaw  Indians,  under  the  treaty  of  Dancing  Rabbit,  1830. 
It  was  named  for  Governor  Walter  Leake,  member  of  the  Constitu- 
tional Convention  of  1817,  United  States  senator  and  twice  governor 
of  the  State.    The  original  act  defines  its  limits  as  follows :    "Be- 


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62  MISSISSIPPI 

ginning  at  the  northeast  corner  of  Scott  county,  and  running  from 
thence  north  with  the  line  between,  ranges  9  and  10  east,  to  the  line 
between  townships  12  and  13 ;  from  thence  west,  with  the  line  be- 
tween townships  12  and  13,  to  the  line  between  ranges  6  and  6  east ; 
from  thence  south  with  said  line  between  ranges  6  and  6  east,  to 
the  line  between  townships  8  and  9;  and  from  thence  east  to  the 
place  of  beginning." 

The  county  is  an  exact  square,  contains  16  townships  or  561 
square  miles  and  is  located  almost  at  the  center  of  the  State.  It  is 
bounded  on  the  north  by  Attala  county,  on  the  east  by  Neshoba 
county,  on  the  south  by  Scott  county  and  on  the  west  by  Madison 
county.  There  are  as  yet  no  railroads  within  its  borders,  but  trans- 
portation facilities  are  afforded  by  the  Pearl  river,  which  runs 
through  the  county  from  the  northeast  to  the  southwest  and  is 
navigable  to  Edinburg  on  the  eastern  border.  Besides  the  Pearl, 
the  region  is  watered  by  its  numerous  tributaries,  the  Yokahockany 
river.  Yellow,  Young  Warrior  and  Standing  Pine  creeks.  There  are 
no  large  towns  within  its  area.  Carthage,  near  the  center,  2  miles 
north  of  Pearl  river,  is  the  county  seat  and  contains  a  population  of 
416.  Some  of  the  more  important  settlements  are  Walnut  Grove, 
Edinburg,  Standing  Pine  and  Goodhope.  As  early  as  1837  it  pos- 
sessed a  population  of  1,136  whites  and  531  slaves.  Among  the 
earliest  settlers  may  be  numbered  the  families  of  the  Harpers, 
Loyds,  Warners,  Freeneys,  Dicksons,  Boyds,  Eades  and  Vanans- 
dales.  The  general  surface  of  the  region  is  undulating  and  hilly, 
and  a  large  section  is  composed  of  level,  bottom  or  swamp  lands. 
The  last  census  shows  about  one-third  of  the  land  improved,  the  rest 
timbered  with  pine,  oaks,  hickory,  beech,  poplar,  chestnut,  maple, 
walnut,  sycamore  and  cypress.  The  soil  is  red  clay  in  the  hills, 
loam,  second-bottoms  and  alluvial  soils  called  "reed-brakes."  These 
bottom  lands,  when  reclaimed  by  drainage,  are  extremely  produc- 
tive. The  products  of  the  county  are  cotton,  corn,  sorghum,  sugar- 
cane, rice,  potatoes  and  all  kinds  of  fruits  and  vegetables.  There  is 
little  manufacturing  done,  but  pasturage  is  good  and  live  stock  does 
well  and  many  have  embarked  in  this  industry.  The  live  stock  in 
1900  was  valued  at  nearly  $500,000. 

The  twelfth  census  of  the  United  States  for  the  year  1900  shows 
that  there  were  in  the  county  2,756  farms,  embracing  an  acreage  of 
302,264,  of  which  102,736  were  improved.  The  value  of  the  land, 
exclusive  of  the  buildings  is  $886,180,  value  of  the  buildings 
$394,860,  value  of  the  live  stock  $468,227,  and  the  total  value  of 
products  not  fed  $966,529.  The  number  of  manufacturing  estab- 
lishments is  48,  capital  invested  $84,501,  wages  paid  $9,278,  cost  of 
materials  $32,203  and  total  value  of  products  $62,069.  The  popu- 
lation in  1900  consisted  of  whites  10,747,  colored  6,613,  a  total  of 
17,360  and  2,557  more  than  in  the  year  1890.  The  total  assessed 
valuation  of  real  and  personal  property  in  Leake  county  in  1905 
was  $1,549,795  and  in  1906  it  was  $2,626,254,  showing  an  increase 
during  the  year  of  $1,076,459. 


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MISSISSIPPI  63 

Leake,  Walter,  third  governor  of  the  State,  "was  born  in  Albe- 
marle county,  Va.,  May  20,  1762.  He  was  the  son  of  Capt.  Mask 
Leake,  a  Revolutionary  officer,  and  Patience  Morris,  of  Hanover, 
and  was  named  for  his  paternal  grandfather,  Walter  Leake,  of 
Goochland,  who  was  a  son  of  William  Leake  and  Mary  Bostick, 
first  of  the  family  in  Virginia.  He  was  at  one  time  a  member  of 
the  Virginia  legislature  from  Albemarle  county,  and  a  few  years 
later  we  find  him  a  candidate  for  the  United  States  congress 
against  Thomas  Mann  Randolph,  Mr.  Jefferson's  son-in-law. 
Randolph  beat  him  by  two  votes.  Leake  immediately  announced 
his  intention  of  running  again;  but  before  another  election  Mr. 
Jefferson  appointed  him  chief  judge  of  the  Mississippi  territory, 
which  appointment  he  accepted.  He  accordingly  removed  with 
his  wife  (Elizabeth  Wingfield)  and  family  to  his  new  post 
of  duty.  (Virginia  Hist.  Mag.,  April,  1904.)  He  was  ap- 
pointed one  of  the  judges  (there  being  no  such  office  as  "chief 
judge")  of  the  Mississippi  territory,  to  succeed  George  Matthews, 
March  2,  1807,  and  arrived  at  the  town  of  Washington  in  May. 
He  made  his  home  in  Claiborne  county,  about  60  miles  from  Wash- 
ington (see  Judiciary,  Territorial).  Hinds  county  was  fifteen  years 
in  the  future,  and  was  then  in  the  undisturbed  possession  of  the 
Choctaws.  Judge  Leake  served  with  distinguished  ability  as  Ter- 
ritorial judge  until  the  general  assembly,  Oct.  9,  1817,  elected  him 
one  of  the  first  United  States  senators  from  the  State.  Meanwhile 
he  had  been  elected  a  delegate  from  Claiborne  county  to  the  con- 
stitutional convention  of  1817,  of  which  he  was  a  valuable  mem- 
ber, with  his  associates  on  the  Territorial  bench,  Poindexter  and 
Simpson.  He  took  his  seat  in  the  senate  Dec.  11,  1817,  and  drew 
the  four  years'  term.  He  resigned  his  seat  to  become  a  candidate 
for  governor,  and  was  elected  over  Charles  B.  Green  by  a  vote  of 
nearly  four  to  one.  The  bank  monopoly  question  was  to  some  ex- 
tent an  issue,  it  having  been  raised  against  the  bank  by  Gov.  Poin- 
dexter. June  17,  before  the  election.  Gov.  Poindexter  appointed 
him  to  the  supreme  bench  to  succeed  John  Taylor,  deceased,  and 
serve  until  the  legislature  should  elect.  Taylor  had  succeeded 
him  in  1817.  He  was  again  on  the  bench,  also  holding  circuit 
court,  until  he  became  governor  Jan.  7,  1822.  In  his  farewell  mes- 
sage. Gov.  Poindexter  offered  his  "congratulations  on  the  judicious 
selection  which  has  been  made,  in  the  worthy  and  distinguished 
citizen  who  has  been  chosen  to  succeed  me  in  this  office.  If  in- 
tegrity the  most  pure  and  unsullied,  combined  with  sound  intel- 
ligence and  great  experience  in  public  life  are  qualifications  for 
the  highest  trust  in  the  gift  of  the  people,  they  are  identified  in 
the  individual  selected  as  your  chief  magistrate."  His  letters  in 
the  executive  journal  are  dated  from  Jackson  or  Spring  Plains,  his 
home,  until  March,  1825,  when  the  name  Mount  Salus  appears. 
His  last  letter  on  the  journal  is  dated,  "Mount  Salus,  August  10, 
1825."  He  died  Nov.  17  of  that  year.  One  child  survived  him,  a 
daughter,  who  married  Henry  Goodloe  Johnston.  A  grandson  of 
the  governor,  Walter  Leake  Keirn,  was  an  officer  of  the  Confed- 


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64  MISSISSIPPI 

erate  States  army  and  members  of  the  legislature  from  Holmes 
county,  1892-98. 

The  home  he  built  and  called  Mount  Salus,  on  land  purchased 
in  1823,  was  "fashioned  after  the  manner  of  old  English  manor 
houses;  square  built,  with  wide  windows,  heavy  doors  and  solid 
floors,  was  inviting  in  its  hospitality  and  was  often  the  scene  of 
social  gayety."  (C.  H.  Brough.)  The  home  of  Cowles  Meade 
was  about  a  mile  distant.  The  town  that  grew  up  bore  the  name 
of  Mount  Salus  until  changed  to  Clinton  three  years  later. 

When  General  Lafayette  visited  Mississippi  in  1825  Gov.  Leake 
was  confined  to  his  bed  by  the  disease  that  caused  his  death,  and 
sent  his  aide-de-camp  to  pay  his  respects  to  the  distinguished  visi- 
tor. Lafayette  remembered  the  name  and  declared  to  those  about 
him  that  Leake  was  a  deserter.  When  Capt.  Mask  Leake  went 
into  the  field  in  1781,  having  sent  his  oldest  son  into  the  army,  he 
told  Walter  to  remain  at  home  and  care  for  the  mother  and 
younger  -children.  But  later,  the  father  found  Walter  in  the  lines 
before  Yorktown,  and  took  him  before  Lafayette,  who  was  kind 
to  the  young  man  and  assigned  him  to  duty.  "And  so,"  said  La- 
fayette, "Walter  Leake  deserted  home  to  fight  for  his  country." 
(Richmond  Enquirer.)  "As  a  patriot  and  statesman,"  said  David 
Holmes,  "he  was  distinguished  from  early  life  for  the  ardor,  abil- 
ity and  fidelity  with  which  he  discharged  the  various  and  impor- 
tant trusts  committed  to  him  by  his  country." 

Leake's  Administration.  Governor  Walter  Leake  took  office  Jan. 
7,  1822,  at  the  town  of  Columbia,  then  the  seat  of  government. 
The  governor's  residence  at  this  time  was  at  Spring  Plains,  Clai- 
borne county.  In  the  preceding  November  the  two  houses  had 
elected  Samuel  C.  Wooldridge  to  succeed  P.  P.  Schuyler  as  treas- 
urer; John  A.  Grimball,  secretary  of  state,  and  Hiram  G.  Runnels, 
auditor.  Thomas  B.  Reed  was  attorney-general,  1821-25.  On  account 
of  the  changes  made  the  legislature  was  not  in  session  at  the  begin- 
ning of  his  term,  and  did  not  convene  until  the  special  session  at 
Columbia,  June,  1822,  for  the  consideration  of  the  Poindexter  code. 
At  this  time  Lieutenant-Governor  Dickson  was  installed.  The 
governor's  first  message,  in  June,  was  mainly  devoted  to  an  elab- 
orate argument  against  a  proposition  of  New  Jersey  and  Ken- 
tucky that  congress  should  reserve  lands  for  the  support  of  their 
educational  funds  as  well  as  for  those  of  the  new  States. 

This  legislature  passed  an  important  act,  revising  the  boun- 
daries of  the  counties  (q.  v.).  At  this  time  all  the  Chickasaw  and 
Choctaw  purchase  of  1816  was  called  Monroe  county,  and  all  the 
Choctaw  purchase  of  1820  Hinds  county,  but  in  the  latter  there 
had  yet  been  no  sale  of  land. 

The  year  1822  is  memorable  for  the  beginning  of  the  towns  of 
Jackson  and  Vicksburg  (q.  v).  In  1822  a  small,  two-story,  brick 
State  house  was  built  on  the  west  side  of  the  bluff  on  Pearl  river, 
on  the  northeast  corner  of  Capitol  and  President  streets  (see  Cap- 
itol), and  the  legislature  convened  there  two  days  before  Christ- 
mas.   In  his  message  the  governor  said :    "Permit  me  to  congratu- 


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MISSISSIPPI  65 

late  you  on  your  first  meeting  at  the  place  determined  on  as  the 
permanent  seat  of  our  government ;  where,  for  the  first  time,  your 
deliberations  may  be  conducted  in  a  house,  the  property  of  the 
State,  and  erected  exclusively  for  the  purpose  of  legislation;  and 
also,  on  the  prospect  of  comfortable  accommodations  at  a  place 
where  so  little  could  have  been  reasonably  expected.  I  am  fully 
persuaded,  that  if  your  acommodations  will  not  be  equal  to  the 
wishes  of  those  who  provide  them,  they  will  at  least  exceed  the 
expectations  of  those  who  partake  of  them.  When  we  reflect  that 
this  town  was  but  a  short  time  since  entirely  in  the  woods,  in  the 
midst  of  a  wilderness,  the  former  abode  of  untutored  savages,  who 
draw  but  a  scanty  support  from  the  beasts  of  the  forest  and  not 
by  agricultural  pursuits,  that  but  little  more  than  six  months  have 
passed  by  since  the  town  of  Jackson  was  laid  off;  that  but  few 
persons  have  as  yet  been  authorized  to  occupy  lots  therein;  the 
great  distance  it  lies  from  whence  all  necessary  supplies  are  to  be 
transported — through  a  country,  too,  where  no  persons  reside  to 
keep  the  roads  in  repair — and  above  all,  when  we  view  the  num- 
ber, dimensions  and  style  of  the  buildings  erected  in  the  town  of 
Jackson,  we  cannot  but  admire  the  enterprise,  industry  and.  per- 
severance of  its  citizens,  and  at  the  same  time  feel  disposed  to  extend 
to  them  every  reasonable  indulgence  that  their  situation  may  seem 
to  merit." 

He  gave  considerable  attention  to  the  criticisms  that  had  been 
made  of  the  Poindexter  code.  He  suggested  that  laws  should  be 
tried  before  being  changed.  "It  becomes  much  more  important 
that  laws  should  be  known  and  understood  than  that  they  should 
be  entirely  approved  by  every  member  of  society;  because,  the 
former  is  not  difficult  to  attain  where  laws  remain  permanent, 
while  the  latter  is  impracticable  in  any  situation  of  things."  He 
would  not  have  the  method  of  the  Medes  and  Persians,  but  he 
would  wait  until  defects  should  be  developed  by  practice,  unless 
there  were  palpable  and  glaring  faults,  "for  it  is  a  sound  maxim  in 
political  science  that  too  much  legislation  is  much  more  injurious 
to  society  than  too  little." 

In  accordance  with  an  act  of  legislature  he  had  borrowed  $5,500 
from  the  bank  to  expend  in  improving  the  Pearl  and  Big  Black 
rivers. 

In  his  message  to  the  legislative  session  of  Dec,  1823  (to  Feb., 
1824),  the  governor  recommended  the  opening  of  a  road  from 
Columbus,  in  Monroe  county,  by  way  of  Jackson  to  Natchez.  A 
road  had  just  been  marked  from  Huntsville,  and  Columbus,  to 
Doak's  stand.  He  also  recommended  a  road  from  Winchester  to 
the  seat  of  government,  which  would  relieve  the  people  of  that 
quarter  from  "the  hardship,  fatigue  and  extreme  exposure  of  trav- 
elling unfrequented  paths  through  an  unsettled  country,  to  the  seat 
of  government."  But  the  legislature  had  no  right  to  open  roads 
through  the  Indian  country  and  could  only  petition  Congress.  He 
also  suggested  that  authority  be  asked  to  apply  the  Three  per  cent 
fund  (See  Const.  Conv.,  1817)  to  the  improvement  of  river  naviga- 

6-II 


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66  MISSISSIPPI 

tion,  as  well  as  roads.  He  received  from  the  general  government, 
Aug.  10, 1825,  $15,780,  on  this  account.  The  Winchester  road  (1825) 
was  paid  for  out  of  it. 

Gov.  Leake  and  Lieutenant-Governor  Brandon  took  office  Jan- 
uary 7,  1824,  and  the  legislature  reelected  Wooldridge  as  treas- 
urer, H.  G.  Runnels  auditor,  and  John  A.  Grimball  secretary  of 
state. 

This  legislature  adopted  a  resolution  cordially  approving  the 
"Monroe  doctrine,"  and  pledged  all  the  resources  of  Mississippi, 
to  maintain  the  principles  of  "justice  and  republicanism  in  this 
hemisphere." 

The  legislature  elected  Richard  Stockton,  Jr.,  judge  of  the  First 
circuit,  by  24  votes,  Thomas  A.  Willis,  secretary  of  the  senate, 
receiving  16.  Thomas  H.  Williams  was  unanimously  reelected  to 
the  United  States  senate.  At  this  session,  the  organization  of  the 
counties  of  Yazoo,  between  the  Mississippi  and  Pearl  rivers,  and 
Copiah,  on  both  sides  of  the  Pearl,  were  provided  for.  ^he  middle 
part,  on  both  sides  of  the  Pearl,  retained  the  name  of  Hinds,  g^ven  in 
1821.  There  were  yet  no  sales  of  land  in  all  this  region,  except 
in  the  town  of  Jackson. 

The  first  sale  was  in  November,  1823,  at  Jackson,  when  Gov. 
Leake  purchased,  in  behalf  of  the  State,  two  half-quarter  sections, 
adjoining  the  plat  of  Jackson,  at  $1.25  an  acre. 

There  wa3  a  deficit  in  the  treasury,  Nov.  1,  1822,  of  $8,000,  and 
this  was  increased  in  the  following  year  to  nearly  $10,000.  The 
receipts  of  1823  were,  in  round  numbers,  $54,000 ;  the  disburse- 
ments $56,000. 

In  May,  1823,  White  Turpin  was  appointed  escheator-general  of 
Mississippi.  It  was  his  duty  to  look  after  unclaimed  estates  for 
the  benefit  of  the  literary  or  school  fund. 

At  the  election  in  August,  1823,  the  vote  for  governor  was :  Wal- 
ter Leake,  3,996 ;  David  Dickson,  2,511 ;  William  Lattimore,  1,986. 
For  lieutenant-governor,  Gerard  C.  Brandon,  5,132;  Thomas  An- 
derson, 1,933 ;  Isaac  R.  Nicholson,  952. 

The  deficit  in  the  treasury  had  grown  at  the  close  of  the  year 
1824,  to  nearly  $16,000,  besides  the  debt  of  $15,000  to  the  bank. 
This  was  evidently  because  of  the  legislative  proneness  to  seek  a 
reputation  for  economy  by  neglecting  to  provide  for  necessary 
expenses  in  advance.  Said  the  governor:  "It  is  surely  no  light 
matter  to  see  the  public  credit  sinking,  and  its  creditors  hawking 
their  warrants  about  in  the  markets,  and  disposing  of  them  at  a 
considerable  discount,  when,  at  the  same  time,  the  resources  of 
the  state  are  sufficiently  ample,  if  they  were  called  into  action  by 
legislative  authority." 

In  January,  1825,  the  legislature  passed  resolutions  joining  in 
"the  general  burst  of  national  gratitude  and  welcome"  to  General 
Lafayette,     (q.  v.) 

The  removal  of  the  Choctaw  Indians  was  begun  in  this  year. 
(See  Treaty  of  Washington.) 

The  venerable  governor  was  ill  in  the  year  1825  at  his  home  at 


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MISSISSIPPI  67 

Mount  Salus.  One  of  his  last  official  acts  was  the  appointment  of 
Powhatan  Ellis  to  the  United  States  senate,  to  succeed  David 
Holmes,  who  had  resigned  to  become  a  candidate  for  governor. 
(See  Brandon's  Adm.)  At  the  election  in  August  Holmes  re- 
ceived 7,846  votes,  and  Cowles  Mead  1,499.  For  lieutenant-gov- 
ernor Gerard  C.  Brandon  was  reelected,  receiving  4,526  votes  to 
4,496  for  Bartlett  C.  Barry. 

Leakesville,  the  capital  of  Greene  county,  is  on  the  Chickasawhay 
river,  44  miles  northwest  of  Mobile,  and  25  miles  south  of  Stateline. 
A  short  railroad  spur  connects  it  with  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.,  at 
Vinegar  Bend,  Ala.  It  was  named  for  the  Honorable  Walter  Leake, 
one  of  the  State's  early  governors.  Lumbering,  stock  raising  and 
agriculture  are  the  chief  industries  of  the  vicinity.  The  Greene 
County  Herald,  a  weekly  newspaper,  was  established  here  in  1898, 
and  is  published  by  E.  W.  Taylor.    Population  in  1900,  66. 

Learned,  an  incorporated  post-town  of  Hinds  county,  about  18 
miles  from  Jackson,  and  9  miles  from  Raymond,  the  county  seat. 
It  is  a  station  on  the  Natchez  branch  of  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi 
Valley  R.  R.    Population  in  1900,  138. 

Leatoiiy  a  post-hamlet  of  Amite  county,  12  miles  north  of  Liberty, 
the  county  seat.     Population  in  1900,  53. 

Leavell,  Zachary  Taylor,  was  born  in  Pontotoc  county  in  1847; 
graduated  at  the  University  of  Mississippi  in  1871 ;  became  a  Bap- 
tist preacher  in  October,  1870;  served  as  pastor  of  Baptist  churches 
at  Dalton,  Ga.,  Murfreesboro',  Tenn.,  and  Columbus,  Ky.,  and  'in 
1887  returned  to  Mississippi.  After  serving  as  pastor  at  Oxford, 
Natchez  and  Clinton  be  came  financial  agent  of  Mississippi  col- 
lege, and  afterwards  a  member  of  its  faculty;  was  president  of 
Carrolltown  Female  college,  1890-95.  He  is  the  author  of  "Bap- 
tist Annuals,"  "History  of  Mississippi  Baptists,"  and  other  pub- 
lications.   He  died  at  Jackson,  Miss.,  August  12,  1905. 

Lebanon,  a  postoffice  of  Marshall  county,  12  miles  south  of  Holly 
Springs,  and  4  miles  southwest  of  Potts  Camp,  the  nearest  rail- 
road town  on  the  Frisco  System. 

LeddreWy  a  hamlet  of  Covington  county,  situated  on  the  west 
bank  of  the  Leaf  river,  about  15  miles  northeast  of  Williamsburg, 
the  county  seat.  The  postoffice  here  has  been  discontinued  and  mail 
now  goes  to  Oakahay. 

Lee,  a  postoffice  of  Lawrence  county. 

Lee  County,  formerly  embraced  within  the  limits  of  Itawamba 
and  Pontotoc  counties/ was  established  October  26,  1866,  and  was 
named  for  General  Robert  E.  Lee,  commander  of  the  armies  of  the 
Confederacy.  This  region  was  originally  part  of  the  Chickasaw 
cession  of  1832  (q.  v.,  also  Itawamba,  Pontotoc),  and  is  located  in 
the  northeastern  part  of  the  State,  in  the  so-called  "northeastern 
prairie  belt."  It  is  a  long,  narrow  county  bounded  on  the  north  by 
Prentiss  county,  on,  the  east  by  Itawamba  county,  on  the  south  by 
Monroe  and  Chickasaw  counties  and  on  the  west  by  Pontotoc  and 
Union  counties,  and  contains  about  449  square  miles  of  territory. 

E.  G.  Thomas,  C.  A.  Marshall,  Jesse  Hunt,  Jas.  R.  Harrill,  Burrell 


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68  MISSISSIPPI 

Jackson,  W.  H.  Calhoun  and  Jacob  Bardin  were  appointed  com- 
missioners to  organize  the  new  county  by  the  original  act,  and  the 
first  courts  were  directed  to  be  held  at  Saltillo,  pending  the  selec- 
tion of  a  permanent  seat  of  justice  at  a  special  election,  when  Tupelo 
was  chosen  April  15,  1867.  The  first  officers  of  the  county  were 
Jacob  Bardin,  Probate  Judge;  D.  P.  Cypert,  Probate  Clerk;  A.  J. 
Cockran,  Circuit  Clerk ;  J.  M.  Dillard,  Sheriff ;  A.  M.  Robinson,  As- 
sessor; W.  A.  Dozier,  County  Surveyor;  Robert  Gray,  Coroner; 
W.  R.  Hampton,  Ranger;  J.  L.  Finley,  County  Attorney.  The 
county  school  commissioners  were  G.  C.  Thomason,  E.  G.  Thomas, 
John  B.  Sparks  and  Rev.  J.  D.  Russell.  Col.  John  M.  Simonton  was 
the  first  State  Senator,  and  Col.  J.  D.  Wilson  and  Hugh  H.  Martin 
were  the  first  representatives  of  the  county  in  the  Lower  House. 

The -old  brick  court  house,  erected  in  1871  at  a  cost  of  $25,000, 
was  burned  in  1873.  It  was  replaced  by  a  brick  structure  which  was 
also  destroyed  by  fire  in  1904;  and  then  the  present  court  house 
was  erected  in  1904  at  a  cost  of  $60,000.  The  county  has  a  fine  brick 
jail,  erected  at  a  cost  of  $15,000.  Its  largest  town  is  Tupelo,  near 
the  center,  and  the  junction  point  of  the  Mobile  &  Ohio,  and  the 
St.  Louis  &  San  Francisco  railroads.  Tupelo  has  a  population 
of  3,500,  is  a  manufacturing  city  of  importance.  By  reason  of 
its  situation  near  the  line  where  the  black  prairie  and  Pontotoc 
Ridge  sections  meet,  it  is  the  center  of  a  rich  farming  region.  Other 
important  railroad  towns  are  Baldwyn  (pop.  750),  in  the  northern 
part,  Nettleton  (pop.  600),  in  the  southern  part,  and  Shannon, 
Verona,  Guntown,  Saltillo,  Plantersville  and  Belden.  The  county 
is  traversed  from  north  to  south  by  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R., 
and  from  the  northwest  to  the  southeast  by  the  St.  Louis  &  San 
Francisco  R.  R.,  which  provide  it  with  excellent  transportation 
facilities.  The  county  is  watered  by  numerous  creeks,  the  head 
waters  of  the  Tombigbee  river,  of  which  Old  Town  is  the  principal 
one.  The  southern  part  of  the  county  is  a  prairie  region,  but  there 
is  considerable  timber  found  in  the  northern  part  and  east  of  the 
Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.  The  timber  consists  of  oak,  hickory,  ash, 
gum,  poplar,  beech  and  walnut.  A  good  deal  of  the  larger  growth 
has  been  cut  off  and  the  land  brought  under  cultivation.  The  soil 
is  very  productive — black  hammock,  beeswax  prairie,  black  sandy 
and  sandy — and  cotton,  corn,  oats,  wheat,  tobacco,  potatoes,  fruits 
and  vegetables  all  do  well.  This  is  an  excellent  stock  country  and 
the  industry  has  developed  rapidly  within  the  last  decade.  The 
value  of  the  live  stock  now  exceeds  $700,000.  Excellent  church 
and  school  facilities  are  provided  in  every  section  of  the  county  and 
the  people  as  a  whole  are  prosperous  and  contented.  The  railroad 
advantages  already  enjoyed  and  the  proximity  of  the  region  to  the 
Alabama  coal  fields,  should  eventually  render  Lee  county  an  im- 
portant manufacturing  district. 

The  twelfth  census  of  the  United  States  for  1900  gives  the  fol- 
lowing statistics  for  the  county :  Number  of  farms  3,501,  acreage  in 
farms  238,491,  acres  improved  134,379,  value  of  land,  exclusive  of 
buildings  $1,585,950,  value  of  buildings  $510,440,  value  of  live  stock 


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MISSISSIPPI  69 

$710,790  and  total  value  of  products  $1,356,017.  Number  of  manu- 
facturing establishments  75,  capital  $297,876,  wages  paid  $40,195, 
cost  of  materials  $143,854  and  total  value  of  products  $277,465.  The 
population  in  1900  consisted  of  whites  13,297,  colored  8,659,  total 
21,956,  increase  over  the  year  1890,  1,916;  estimated  population  in 
1906,  was  25,000.  Manufactures,  especially  in  the  city  of  Tupelo, 
have  increased  at  a  rapid  rate,  and  in  the  city  alone  there  has  been 
invested  at  least  $500,000  in  manufacturing  industries  in  the  last 
five  years.  The  total  assessed  valuation  of  real  and  personal  prop- 
erty in  the  county  in  1905  was  $3,308,452  and  in  1906  it  was  $4,776,- 
623,  showing  an  increase  during  the  year  of  $1,268,171.  Under 
a  special  drainage  act  by  the  Legislature,  Lee  county  was 
empowered  to  drain  about  25,000  acres  of  swamp  and  over- 
flow lands  along  Town,  Mud,  Twenty  Mile,  Coonewah  and 
Chiwappah  creeks.  Over  60  miles  of  ditches  were  excavated  and 
the  lands  brought  into  cultivation  have  become  the  most  fertile  in 
the  county.  These  lands  were  thereby  increased  in  value  from  $2  to- 
$50  and  $60  per  acre.  Land  values  in  Lee  county  have  rapidly  ad- 
vanced in  the  last  five  years  and  realty  that  could  have  been 
bought  for  $2  to  $5  per  acre,  is  now  readily  sold  at  $10  to  $30  an 
acre.  Artesian  water  is  found  in  various  parts  of  the  countjr  and 
flowing  wells  are  to  be  seen  in  almost  every  locality.  Withm  the 
last  six  years  the  banks  in  Lee  county  have  increased  from  two  to- 
seven  in  number. 

Lee,  Stephen  Dill,  was  born  at  Charleston,  S.  C,  Sept.  22,  1833^ 
of  patriotic  lineage.  His  great-grandfather,  William  Lee,  was 
one  of  40  leading  citizens  of  Charleston  whose  devotion  to  the 
Continental  cause  was  punished  by  imprisonment  on  a  prison  ship- 
and  transportation  to  St.  Augustine,  Fla.  His  grandfather,. 
Thomas  Lee,  was  appointed  United  States  district  judge  by  Pres- 
ident Monroe,  and  was  a  supporter  of  President  Jackson  during 
the  Calhoun  nullification  period.  Stephen  D.  Lee  was  graduated 
at  West  Point  in  the  class  of  1854,  and  was  a  first-lieutenant  and 
regimental  quartermaster  of  the  4th  U.  S.  artillery  when  he  re- 
signed in  1861,  because  of  the  secession  of  his  State.  He  was  one 
of  tbe  two  oflScers  of  South  Carolina  troops  sent  by  Gen.  Beaure- 
gard to  demand  the  surrender  of  Fort  Sumter,  and  upon  the  re- 
fusal of  this  demand  he  ordered  the  nearest  battery  to  fire  upon 
the  fort.  He  served  as  captain  of  a  battery  in  the  Hampton  Legion 
until  November,  1861,  when  he  was  made  a  major  of  artillery.  In 
the  spring  of  1862  he  was  promoted  to  lieutenant-colonel,  and  after 
gaining  distinction  at  Seven  Pines  and  in  the  Seven  Days  battles 
agaijist  McClellan,  he  was  given  command  of  the  4th  Virginia 
cavalry.  At  the  opening  of  the  campaign  against  Pope  he  was 
promoted  to  colonel,  and  his  conduct  was  such  at  Second  Manas- 
sas that  President  Davis  said :  "I  have  reason  to  believe  he  served 
to  turn  the  tide  of  battle  and  consummate  the  victory."  At  Sharps- 
burg,  with  the  same  command,  he  was  again  distinguished.  Then 
it  became  necessary  to  reinforce  the  army  in  Mississippi  with 
skillful  commanders  as  well  as  troops  for  the  defense  of  Vicks- 


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70  MISSISSIPPI 

burg,  and  Gen.  R.  E.  Lee,  being  asked  to  select  his  most  efficient 
artillery  officer  for  transfer,  designated  Col.  S.  D.  Lee,  who  was 
promoted  to  brigadier-general,  Nov.  6,  1862,  and  assigned  to  duty 
in  the  west.  (See  Vicksburg,  Second  campaign;  Vicksburg  cam- 
paign of  1863;  Vicksburg,  siege  of;  War  of  1861-65;  and  Army  of 
Tennessee.)  He  was  paroled  at  Vicksburg,  and  when  exchanged, 
was  promoted  August  3,  1863,  to  major-general  and  put  in  com- 
mand of  cavalry;  June  23,  1864,  was  promoted  to  lieutenant-gen- 
eral and  given  command  of  the  department  of  Mississippi,  Alabama, 
East  Louisiana  and  West  Tennessee,  and  after  Gen.  John  B.  Hood 
was  put  at  the  head  of  the  army  in  Georgia,  he  was  called  to  take 
command  of  Hood's  corps.  He  fought  the  battles  of  Ezra  Church 
and  Jonesboro,  near  Atlanta,  and  was  in  corps  command  during 
the  subsequent  flank  movement  in  north  Georgia  and  the  Nash- 
ville campaign.  In  the  battle  of  Nashville  he  held  Overton  hill 
against  the  enemy's  assaults  until  after  the  left  and  center  of  the 
army  were  driven  back  and,  on  the  next  day,  his  corps,  the  only 
one  with  organizations  intact,  covered  the  retreat,  repulsing  every 
effort  of  Wilson's  cavalry  from  dawn  till  late  at  night.  During  this 
day's  fighting  Gen.  Lee  was  severely  wounded.  His  last  campaign 
was  in  North  Carolina,  where  he  was  paroled  with  Johnston's 
army.  In  February,  1865,  he  married  Regina  Harrison,  of  Colum- 
bus, Miss.,  where  he  made  his  home.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
State  senate  of  1878,  from  Lowndes,  and  a  delegate  to  the  consti- 
tutional convention  of  1890.  As  president  of  the  Agricultural  and 
Mechanical  college,  he  was  of  g^eat  service  to  the  South,  from 
1880  until  he  resigned  in  1899  to  accept  appointment  as  a  member 
of  the  Vicksburg  National  park  association.  After  several  years 
as  commander  of  the  Mississippi  division  United  Confederate  Vet- 
erans, he  was  made  lieutenant-general  commanding  the  depart- 
ment east  of  the  Mississippi,  and  upon  the  death  of  Gen.  John  B. 
Gordon  he  was  chosen  head  of  this  patriotic  order  in  the  United 
States.  He  is  president  of  the  Mississippi  Historical  society,  and 
of  the  board  of  trustees  of  the  Department  of  Archives  and  His- 
tory. He  is  the  author  of  "The  South  Since  the  War,"  in  the 
Confederate  Military  History;  a  series  of  papers  on  the  A.  &  M. 
college;  and  a  series  published  in  the  Historical  Society  publica- 
tions, covering  the  Vicksburg  campaigns  and  siege,  and  other 
military  subjects. 
•     Leeke,  a  postoffice  of  Covington  county. 

Leesburg,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Rankin 
county,  about  15  miles  northeast  of  Brandon,  the  county  seat,  and 
8  miles  north  of  Pelahatchie,  the  nearest  railroad  station  and  bank- 
ing town.    Population  in  1900,  50. 

Leeville,  a  hamlet  in  the  northwestern  corner  of  Lauderdale 
county,  2  miles  east  of  Battlefield  station  at  the  terminus  of  the 
Tallahatta  Railway  spur.  It  has  rural  free  delivery  from  Battle- 
field. 

Leflore. — ^An  old  village  in  Carroll  county  which  flourished  during 
the  30's.    It  was  a  prosperous  place  when  the  present  city  of  Green- 


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MISSISSIPPI  71 

wood  was  only  known  as  Williams  Landing.  It  was  located  about 
midway  between  CarroUton  and  Greenwood,  upon  land  belonging 
to  Col.  Greenwood  Leflore.  Its  first  merchant  is  reputed  to  have 
been  Uriah  Tison.  It  once  supported  several  stores  and  a  church. 
When  the  village  of  Point  Leflore  sprang  up  in  the  present  county 
of  Leflore,  only  a  few  miles  to  the  west,  Leflore  gradually  dwindled 
and  died. 

Leflore,  a  postoffice  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Grenada  county, 
on  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  17  miles  southwest  of 
Grenada,  the  county  seat.  It  has  three  stores,  a  good  hotel,  a  public 
cotton  gin,  and  a  population  of  60. 

Leflore  County  was  formerly  a  part  of  Sunflower,  Tallahatchie 
and  Carroll  counties  (q.  v.),  and  was  established  March  15,  1871, 
during  the  administration  of  Governor  Alcorn.  It  was  directed  by 
the  act  creating  the  county,  that  the  county  records,  together  with 
the  buildings  and  grounds  at  McNutt,  now  in  Leflore  county, 
should  be  retained  by  Leflore  (see  Sunflower  county),  and  that  the 
county  seat  should  be  located  at  Greenwood.  It  was  named  in 
honor  of  Greenwood  Leflore,  the  last  and  most  powerful  chief  of 
the  Choctaws  in  Mississippi.  Located  in  the  northwestern  part  of 
the  State,  it  constitutes  a  long,  irregularly  shaped  district  on  the 
eastern  side  of  the  fertile  Yazoo  delta,  and  has  a  land  surface  of 
578  square  miles.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Tallahatchie 
county,  the  Yazoo  river  forming  part  of  the  boundary  line,  on  the 
east  by  Grenada  and  Carroll  counties,  on  the  south  by  Holmes 
county,  the  Yazoo  river  again  forming  part  of  the  boundary  line, 
and  on  the  west  by  Sunflower  county.  No  section  in  the  State  is 
possessed  of  greater  natural  resources  and  the  county  ranks  among 
the  first  in  the  value  of  its  products.  The  white  population  is 
small,  being  outnumbered  by  the  colored  in  the  proportion  of  eight 
to  one.  On  account  of  the  low,  level  topography  of  the  region  and 
its  moist,  warm  climate,  malarial  fevers  prevail  to  some  extent. 
In  common,  however,  with  the  rest  of  the  Delta  region,  it  is  under- 
laid by  an  artesian  basin,  and  plenty  of  pure,  cold  water  can  be  ob- 
tained by  drilling  wells  from  160  to  1,500  feet  in  depth.  This  has 
tended  of  late  years  to  minimize  the  dangers  from  bilious  and  inter- 
mittent fevers.  Greenwood,  the  county  seat,  was  also  named  in 
honor  of  Greenwood  Leflore.  Greenwood  was  first  called  Williams 
Landing,  and  was  incorporated  in  1845  and  called  Greenwood. 
It  is  a  place  of  6,000  inhabitants,  situated  in  the  eastern  part  of  the 
county  on  the  Yazoo  river,  3  miles  below  where  the  Tallahatchie 
and  Yalobusha  rivers  unite  to  form  the  Yazoo  river.  It  is  on  the 
Southern  Ry.,  and  at  the  junction  of  two  branches  of  the  Yazoo 
&  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R's.  It  is  a  manufacturing  and  shipping 
point  of  importance,  and  two  large  oil  mills,  several  saw  mills  and 
stave  mills,  a  brick  factory,  machine  shops,  etc.,  are  "located  here. 
Other  towns,  most  of  them  on  the  railroad,  are  Sunnyside,  Itta- 
bena,  Sidon,  Shellmound,  Schlater  and  Philipp.  The  railroads  are 
the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley,  and  the  Southern,  a  branch  of  the 
latter  road  running  north  from  Ittabena  to  Webb,  in  Tallahatchie 


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72  MISSISSIPPI 

county.  Besides  the  excellent  railroad  shipping  facilities,  the 
Yazoo  and  Tallahatchie  rivers  pursue  a  tortuous  course  through 
the  center  of  the  county,  and  are  navigable  the  entire  year.  Other 
streams  and  waters  are  Howling  Wolf  Bayou,  Turkey  Bayou, 
Bear  creek,  Lake  Henry,  and  Blue,  Mclntyre,  Mossy  and  McNutt 
lakes.  The  soil  is  alluvial  and  extremely  fertile  and  will  produce 
from  one  to  two  bales  of  cotton  to  the  acre  and  from  30  to  60 
bushels  of  corn.  It  produces  abundantly  all  the  crops  common  to 
the  Delta  region.  The  timber  is  large  and  of  great  variety,  consist- 
ing of  red-gum,  white-oak,  black-oak,  red-oak  and  cow-oak,  ash, 
elm,  pecan,  hickory,  tupelo  gum,  walnut,  cypress  and  many  others. 

The  twelfth  United  States  census  for  1900,  gives  the  following 
statistics  for  the  county :  Number  of  farms  4,266,  acreage  in  farms 
192,108,  acres  improved  117,013,  value  of  land  exclusive  of  buildings 
$3,430,180,  value  of  buildings  $658,020,  value  of  live  stock  $622,761, 
total  value  of  products  $2,032,187.  The  number  of  manufacturing 
establishments  was  97,  capital  $630,005,  wages  paid  $94,817,  cost  of 
materials  $574,956,  total  value  of  products  $933,799.  The  population 
in  1900  consisted  of  whites  2,796,  colored  21,038,  total  23,834,  in- 
crease of  6,965  over  the  year  1890.  Total  population  in  1906  is 
estimated  at  about  30,000.  The  total  assessed  valuation  of  real  and 
personal  property  in  the  county  in  1905  was  $4,802,540  and  in  1906 
it  was  $5,837,563,  which  shows  an  increase  during  the  year  of 
$1,035,023.  There  are  25  white  schools  and  8  cdlored  schools  in  the 
county.  There  has  been  a  general  gain  in  the  development  of  every 
phase  of  business,  and  in  the  clearing  of  farms  of  at  least  33^  per 
cent,  since  1900. 

LeFlore,  Greenwood,  was  born  June  3,  1800,  at  LeFleur's  bluff, 
near  the  site  of  Jackson,  Miss.,  son  of  Louis  LeFleur,  a  French 
trader,  who  came  to  Mobile  in  1792,  and  in  the  course  of  his  opera- 
tions established  a  station  at  the  bluff  on  Pearl  river  that  after- 
ward bore  his  name,  and  married  an  Indian  girl  named  Rebecca 
Cravat.  When  Greenwood,  who  got  his  name  in  honor  of  an  Eng- 
lish sea-captain,  once  a  partner  of  Louis,  was  twelve  years  old, 
the  family  moved  to  a  spot  now  included  in  Choctaw  county,  on 
the  Natchez  trail  northward,  where  the  senior  LeFleur  kept  tav- 
ern. The  place  is  yet  known  as  French  Camp.  Maj.  John  Donly, 
mail  carrier  between  Nashville  and  Natchez,  took  a  liking  to 
young  LeFlore  and  carried  him  to  Nashville  for  schooling.  He 
there  fell  in  love  with  Donly's  daughter  and  married  her.  Mean- 
while, in  1813,  Louis  LeFleur  had  aided  in  holding  the  Choctaws 
for  the  United  States  during  the  war  with  England,  and  had  served 
as  a  major  under  Chief  Pushamataha,  who  held  the  rank  "of  col- 
onel. (Mrs.  N.  D.  Deupree,  M.  H.  S.  Publ.,  VII,  141.)  Young 
LeFlore  returned  home  in  1817,  a  shrewd,  ambitious,  educated 
man,  with  the  ability  to  take  an  important  part  in  the  affairs  of 
the  State. 

After  making  the  treaty  of  Doak's  Stand  in  1820,  Gen.  Jackson 
reported:  "The  application  of  Greenwood  LeFlore  to  become  a 
citizen  of  the  United  States  and  have  his  section  of  land,  to  in- 


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MISSISSIPPI  *  73 

elude  his  improvement,  secured  to  him  in  fee,  is  believed  to  be 
just  and  reasonable,  and  ought  to  be  granted.  It  will,  it  is  pre- 
sumed, have  a  good  effect,  and  in  a  short  time  induce  all  those 
who  remain  on  this  side  of  the  Mississippi  to  petition  for  the  same 
privilege."  He  was  granted  this  privilege  by  the  treaty  of  Wash- 
ington, 1825.  About  the  time  of  the  treaty  of  1826,  (q.  v.)  which 
failed  in  its  object,  he  and  David  Folsom  were  elected  chiefs,  in 
place  of  others  whom  the  nation  suspected  of  being  friendly  to  a 
cession  of  land. 

Subsequently  the  rights  of  the  nation  under  the  laws  of  con- 
gress were  invaded  by  State  laws.  He  was  the  regular  law  maker 
of  his  part  of  the  nation,  there  being  three  mingoes  of  the  Choc- 
taws,  in  all,  and  he  endeavored  to  preserve  and  restore  the  an- 
cient virtues  of  the  people  by  rigorous  laws.  (See  Claiborne, 
Mississippi,  515.) 

A  great  council  of  the  Choctaw  nation  met  on  March  15,  1830, 
and  Greenwood  Leflore  was  unanimously  elected  chief  of  the  west- 
ern district,  after  which  he  was  carried  in  triumph  through  the 
captains  and  warriors  of  the  other  districts,  who  on  the  second 
day,  resigned  their  offices  and  elected  Leflore  chief  of  the  whole 
nation.  A  discussion  of  the  question  of  removal  followed,  and 
among  the  speakers  were  warriors  who  had  fought  under  Andrew 
Jackson  and  Anthony  Wayne.  The  vote  was  in  favor  of  emigra- 
tion, and  a  treaty  to  that  effect  was  prepared  and  signed,  and  sent 
to  Washington  by  David  W.  Hailey.  Leflore  instructed  the  cap- 
tains to  "execute  faithfully  the  laws  of  the  nation,  not  in  opposi- 
tion to  Mississippi,  but  in  the  belief  that  Mississippi  would  not 
interfere  when  she  discovered  the  Choctaws  were  endeavoring  to 
get  out  of  her  way."  (Natchez  Galaxy,  April  8,  1830.)  He  was 
a  prominent  figure  in  the  treaty  of  1830,  at  Dancing  Rabbit  Creek 
and  probably  saved  that  conference  from  failure.  He  petitioned 
the  convention  of  1832  that  the  new  constitution  should  pro- 
vide for  the  citizenship  of  such  Choctaws  as  chose  to  remain 
in  the  State,  "it  being  the  intention  .  .  .  not  to  remove  to 
their  country  beyond  the  Mississippi,  but  to  remain  and  demean 
themselves  as  faithful  citizens  of  the  State."  LeFlore  was  elected 
to  the  legislature  of  1835  by  Carroll  county,  and  the  legislature 
broke  up  on  the  question  of  admitting  him  and  the  other  rjspre- 
sentatives  of  new  counties.  In  1841-44  he  was  a  member  of  the 
State  senate.  Through  the  operations  of  the  treaties  and  conse- 
quent speculations  he  acquired  15,000  acres  of  land,  much  of  it 
the  finest  in  the  State,  and  became  a  wealthy  planter,  owning  400 
slaves.  For  his  plantation  convenience  he  founded  the  town  of 
Point  LeFlore,  at  the  junction  of  the  Tallahatchie  and  Yalobusha 
rivers,  established  a  steam  sawmill,  opened  a  road  with  bridges, 
that  cost  him  $75,000,  and  owned  a  steamer  which  plied  the  rivers. 
His  splendid  mansion,  Malmaison,  nine  miles  east  of  the  city  of 
Greenwood  named  in  his  honor,  was  built  in  1854,  succeeding  an 
older  home  built  in  1835.  He  was  also  head  of  a  syndicate  owning 
large  areas  of  land  in  Texas.    In  1861  he  exerted  all  his  influence 


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74  MISSISSIPPI 

against  secession,  and  throughout  the  Confederate  period  he  re- 
fused to  recognize  the  change  of  government  or  accept  Confeder- 
ate money.  At  his  death  Aug.  21,  1865,  his  grandchildren,  at  his 
request,  held  the  old  flag  over  his  bed,  that  it  might  be  his  last 
vision.  Col.  LeFlore  was  married  three  times  and  left  two  daugh- 
ters and  a  son.  Greenwood,  who  removed  to  Indian  Territory. 

Leggett,  a  postoffice  in  the  central  part  of  Pike  county,  8  miles 
due  east  of  Magnolia,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest  railroad  town. 

Leggo»  a  postoffice  of  Yalobusha  county,  10  miles  west  of  Water- 
valley,  the  nearest  railroad  town.  It  is  noted  on  account  of  its 
famous  mineral  well,  which  is  visited  by  many  people  annually  to 
partake  of  the  waters.  There  is  an  excellent  hotel  here  for  the 
accommodation  of  guests. 

Legislature,  State,  1817-33.  The  constitution  of  1817  provided 
for  a  "General  Assembly"  composed  of  a  senate  and  a  house.  To 
be  eligible  to  election  as  a  senator  one  must  be  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States,  an  inhabitant  of  Mississippi  four  years,  and  of  his 
district  one  year;  age,  at  least  26  years;  property,  300  acres  of 
land,  or  an  interest  in  real  estate  of  the  value  of  $1,000.  For  rep- 
resentative the  property  and  State  residence  requirements  were 
modified  by  half.  Each  county  should  have  at  least  one  repre- 
sentative. The  number  should  be  between  the  limits  of  24  and  36, 
apportioned  according  to  the  number  of  free  white  inhabitants. 
The  senators  should  be  apportioned  to  districts  on  the  same  basis, 
and  their  number  should  be  one-fourth  to  one-third  of  the  repre- 
sentatives. The  first  senators  elected  should  draw  lots  for  a  divi- 
sion into  three  classes,  to  serve  one,  two  or  three  years.  There- 
after one-third  would  be  elected  every  year,  the  term  of  all  being 
three  years.  Representatives  were  to  be  elected  annually.  If  any 
city  or  town  had  the  population  adopted  at  any  time  as  the  basis 
of  apportionment  of  representatives,  it  should  be  given  separate 
representation  from  the  county. 

The  first  election  was  set  for  September,  1817,  the  general  As- 
sembly to  meet  at  Natchez  on  the  first  Monday  of  October,  and 
the  schedule  adopted  with  the  constitution  made  a  temporary  ap- 
portionment of  members.  Accotdingly,  the  following  1st  Gen- 
eral Assembly  of  the  State  of  Mississippi  was  elected :  Senate. — 
Warren  and  Claiborne,  Daniel  Burnet;  Adams,  Henry  Postle- 
thwait ;  Jefferson,  Hezekiah  J.  Balch ;  Wilkinson,  Duncan  Stewart , 
resigned,  Joseph  Johnson;  Amite,  David  Lea;  Franklin  and  Pike, 
David  Dickson,  resigned,  Nathaniel  Wells ;  Lawrence,  Marion  and 
Hancock,  Charles  Stovall;  Greene,  Wayne  and  Jackson,  Josiah 
Skinner.  House. — Warren,  Jacob  Hyland;  Claiborne,  Thomas 
Barnes,  Henry  G.  Johnston ;  Jefferson,  Benjamin  M.  Bullen,  re- 
signed, Cowles  Mead,  Edward  Duggan;  Adams,  Philander  Smith, 
Joseph  Sessions,  Edward  Turner,  Charles  B.  Green;  Franklin, 
Joseph  Winn;  Wilkinson,  Thomas  M.  Gildart,  Abram  M.  Scott, 
John  Joor;  Amite,  David  Davis,  Hardy  Coward,  Angus  Wilkinson; 
Pike,  Elbert  Burton,  David  Qeveland ;  Lawrence,  Harman  Runnels ; 
Marion,    George    H.    Dixon;    Hancock,    Noel    Jourdan;    Greene, 


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George  B.  Dameron ;  Wayne,  William  Patton ;  Jackson,  Archibald 
McManis.  This  legislature  convened  at  Washington,  Oct.  G, 
1817,  and  organized  by  electing  Thomas  Barnes  speaker,  Peter 
A.  VanDorn  clefk,  and  John  Lowrey  doorkeeper.  Duncan  Stew- 
art, who  had  been  elected  both  senator  and  lieutenant-governor, 
was  made  president  pro  tempore  of  the  senate;  the  veteran  sec- 
retary of  the  Territorial  council,  Felix  Hughes,  secretary  and 
Duncan  Roberts  doorkeeper.  When  he  had  qualified,  next  day, 
the  lieutenant-governor  was  president  of  the  senate,  with  a  voice 
and  vote  in  committee  of  the  whole  and  a  vote  in  case  of  tie  on 
any  occasion. 

In  forming  the  house  committees.  Turner,  Green  and  Runnels 
were  entrusted  with  the  organization  of  the  judicial  system;  Ses- 
sions, Nixon  and  Joor  with  the  militia;  Smith,  Joor,  Nixon,  Dam- 
eron and  Johnston  with  the  finances. 

The  two  houses  elected  Walter  Leake  and  Thomas  H.  Williams 
United  States  senators,  Oct.  9,  and  on  the  same  day  adjourned, 
on  account  of  the  yellow  fever.  They  met  again  at  Natchez  Dec. 
8,  at  a  house  of  Edward  Turner,  lately  occupied  by  Manuel  Texada, 
and  Cowles  Mead  was  make  speaker  pro  tem.  of  the  house,  and 
Abram  Defrance  sergeant  at  arms  of  both  houses. 

By  act  of  this  legislature  future  sessions  were  to  convene  on  the 
first  Monday  of  January,  every  year,  at  Natchez.  The  annual 
general  elections  were  to  be  on  the  first  Monday  and  Tuesday  of 
August.  A  census  was  ordered  to  be  taken  as  a  basis  of  appor- 
tionment of  representatives. 

At  the  session  of  January,  1821,  Felix  Hughes  resigned  the  of- 
fice of  secretary  of  the  senate,  and  a  resolution  was  passed 
acknowledging  his  service  for  15.  years,  to  both  council  and  sen- 
ate, with  "distinguished  merit."  At  this  session  the  time  of  meet- 
ing was  changed  to  the  first  Monday  of  November,  and  there  was 
another  session,  therefore,  in  that  year. 

The  sessions  of  November,  1821,  and  June,  1822,  were  at  Colum- 
bia; of  December,  1822,  and  thereafter  in  January,  at  Jackson. 
In  1830  the  session  was  changed  back  to  November.  By  the  ap- 
portionment of  1822,  there  were  32  representatives,  one  of  them 
being  from  the  city  of  Natchez.  The  membership  of  the  senate 
was  increased  to  11  in  1826. 

The  lieutenant-governors,  presidents  of  the  senate,  were  Dun- 
can Stewart,  1817-18-19;  James  Patton,  1820-21;  David  Dickson, 
1822-23;  Gerard  C.  Brandon,  1823-24-25;  Thomas  Freeland,  pro 
tem.,  Jan.  2,  1826 ;  Gerard  C.  Brandon,  Jan.  6,  1826 ;  Abram  M. 
Scott,  pro  tem.,  1827;  William  Dowsing,  pro  tem.,  1828;  Abram 
M.  Scott,  1828-31. 

Thomas  Barnes  was  speaker  of  the  house  in  1817-18;  Edward 
Turner,  1820 ;  Beverly  R.  Grayson,  January,  1821 ;  G.  C.  Brandon, 
1822;  Cowles  Mead,  November,  1821-December,  1825;  Isaac  R. 
Nicholson,  1826-27 ;  Charles  B.  Green,  1828 ;  William  L.  Sharkey, 
1829;  Joseph  Dunbar,  Jan.,  1830;  M.  F.  DeGraffenreid,  Nov.  1830- 
31.    (John  L.  Irwin,  pro  tem.)     There  was  no  session  in  1832. 


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76  MISSISSIPPI 

Legislature,  Territorial.  The  legislative  body  in  Mississippi 
territory  at  the  organization  was  composed  of  the  governor  and 
three  judges,  all  appointed  by  the  president  of  the  United  States. 
(See  Ordinance  of  1787.)  Upon  petition  of  one  party  of  the  inhab- 
itants, dissatisfied  with  Governor  Sargent,  congress  extended  the 
right  of  a  general  assemblv  to  the  territory  in  1800,  although  the 
qualified  voters  were  probably  less  than  a  fourth  as  numerous  as 
required  by  the  ordinance.  It  was  also  proposed,  during  consid- 
eration of  the  measure,  to  modify  the  governor's  power  to  veto 
and  prorogue,  but  the  act  as  passed  did  not  make  such  changes. 
A  bill  was  passed  by  a  strict  party  vote  in  the  lower  house  of  con- 
gress, the  Republicans  having  a  small  majority,  was  amended  by 
the  senate,  and  finally  became  a  law  May  10,  1800. 

It  provided  that  so  much  of  the  ordinance  of  1787  "as  relates  to^ 
the  organization  of  a  general  assembly  therein,  and  prescribes  the 
powers  thereof,  shall  forthwith  operate,  and  be  in  force  in  the 
Mississippi  territory ;  Provided,  That  until  the  number  of  free  male 
inhabitants,  of  full  age,  in  the  said  Territory,  shall  amount  to  five 
thousand,  there  shall  not  be  returned  to  the  general  assembly 
more  than  nine  representatives,"  of  which  Adams  and  Pickering 
counties  should  each  choose  four  and  the  Tensas  and  Tombigbee 
settlements  one.  The  first  election  was  to  be  on  the  fourth  Mon- 
day of  July,  1800,  under  the  control  of  the  governor,  and  all  sub- 
sequent elections  should  be  regulated  by  the  legislature;  the  rep» 
resentatives  to  be  convened  by  the  governor  at  Natchez,  on  the 
fourth  Monday  of  September,  1800 ;  the  general  assembly  to  meet 
at  least  once  a  year  on  the  first  Monday  oif  December,  unless  they 
shall  by  law  ap|>oint  a  different  day;  provided,  that  the  governor 
shall  have  power,  on  extraordinary  occasions,  to  convene  the  gen- 
eral assembly.  That  neither  house,  during  a  session,  should  have 
power,  without  the  consent  of  the  other,  to  adjourn  for  more  than 
three  days,  nor  to  any  other  place  than  that  in  which  the  two 
houses  should  be  sitting.  The  election  was  duly  called  and  held, 
whereupon  the  governor  announced  that  the  return  of  the  sheriff 
of  Pickering  county  showed  the  election  of  Cato  West,  Thomas 
M.  Green,  John  Burnet  and  Thomas  Calvit ;  and  they  -were  asked 
to  convene  at  the  appointed  time  ait  Natchez.  The  Adams  county 
return,  as  the  governor  viewed  it,  showed  the  election  of  only  two 
members,  "though  Messrs.  Sutton  Bankes,  Abner  L.  Duncan. 
William  Conner  and  William  Dunbar  have  their  names  inserted 
in  the  return  (some  of  them  with  a  considerable  plurality  of  votes) 
and  are  in  consequence  invited  to  assemble  also."  On  account  of 
this,  and  the  failure  of  an  election  in  Washington,  the  governor 
advised  the  house  to  proceed  with  caution.  Sept.  22  he  adminis- 
tered the  oath  to  Cato  West,  Thomas  M.  Green,  John  Burnet, 
Thomas  Calvit,  Henry  Hunter  and  James  Hoggatt,  (the  latter 
two  from  Adams).  After  investigation  they  seated  Anthony 
Hutchins  and  Sutton  Bankes,  whom  the  sheriff  did  not  return  as 
elected.  The  ordinance  required  that  a  representative  should 
have  been  a  citizen  of  one  of  the  United  States  three  years  and  a 


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MISSISSIPPI  77 

resident  in  the  district,  or  should  have  resided  in  the  district  three 
years,  and,  in  either  case,  be  the  owner  of  two  hundred  acres  of 
land. 

The  messenger  to  Washington  county  lost  his  horse  in  going 
through  the  Indian  country,  and  did  not  arrive  in  time.  An  elec- 
tion was  held  August  16,  but  Judges  Lewis  and  Bruin  gave  an 
opinion  that  this  was  not  legal,  and  the  representative  thus  chosen, 
John  McGrew,  was  not  seated.  Joseph  Thompson  was  elected  in 
1801.  William  Dunbar  refused  to  contest  the  election  in  Adams 
county,  as  invited  to  by  the  governor,  probably  because,  as  the 
latter  said,  he  had  never  been  a  citizen  of  the  United  States  before 
1798,  "and  our  district  was  not  of  three  years'  standing." 

The  house  was  organized  by  the  election  of  Col.  Henry  Hunter 
as  speaker  (Peter  Walker  was  appointed  clerk),  and  after  settling 
its  membership,  made  the  nominations  of  ten  men,  out  of  which 
the  president  should  select  five  to  compose  the  council  or  upper 
house.  These  were  promptly  forwarded  by  the  governor,  who 
thought  it  "a  duty  to  observe  that  there  seems  an  unnecessary 
as  well  as  general  lack  of  the  attributes  which  the  very  name  im- 
plies as  essential  to  the  office — ^an  evident  intention  to  exclude  men 
of  sense  and  letters — melancholy  considerations  indeed."  But  he 
made  an  exception  of  Messrs.  Ellis  and  Bingaman,  as  men  of 
wealth  and  worthy  members  of  society. 

As  if  in  reply  to  this  letter,  it  was  said  in  the  reply  of  the  house 
to  the  public  address  of  the  governor,  the  reply  being  delayed  until 
Anthony  Hutchins  was  seated,  and  written  by  him: 

"With  candor  we  acknowledge  that  men  of  much  superior  talent 
and  discernment  this  country  could  produce  to  compose  the  house, 
but  that  any  can  have  the  interest  and  welfare  of  the  community 
more  at  heart  we  deny.  Our  fortunes,  and  what  is  still  more 
dear — our  wives  and  children  call  upon  us  to  discharge  the  sacred 
trust  reposed  in  us  with  probity  and  honor.  .  .  .  That  the 
characters  of  some  of  those  who  are  now  become  members  of  this 
house  have  been  grossly  misrepresented  to  the  general  govern- 
ment heretofore,  cannot  we  believe  be  denied  and  that  they  will 
now  have  the  opportunity  of  proving  the  injustice  of  the  accusa- 
tion^ is  their  greatest  satisfaction." 

It  seems  that  at  this  session  of  the  house  of  representatives  con- 
gress was  memorialized  to  change  the  time  of  meeting  of  the  gen- 
eral assembly.  On  acount  of  delay  in  appointments  of  the 
council,  there  was  no  session  as  provided  by  the  ordinance,  in  De- 
cember, 1800.  The  commissions  did  not  arrive  until  the  early 
part  of  April,  1801,  when  it  appeared  that  the  members  selected 
were  Adam  Bingaman,  John  Ellis,  John  Stampley,  Alexander 
Montgomery  and  John  Flood  McGrew,  the  latter  from  the  Tom- 
bigbee.  Before  calling  the  assembly,  Secretary  Steele  sought  in- 
formation from  the  secretary  of  state  in  regard  to  what  change 
had  been  made  in  the  sessions,  if  any,  and  this  he  assigned  as  the 
reason  for  delay  in  calling  a  special  session  when,  on  May  6th,  he 
was  brought  a  letter  of  inquiry  from  Speaker  Hunter,  by  Messrs. 


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78  MISSISSIPPI 

Hutchins  and  West.  Gov.  Sargent  had  departed  for  the  east  in 
April.  On  May  26  the  secretary  proclaimed  the  first  session  of 
the  first  general  assembly,  to  convene  July  28.  Governor  Clai- 
borne wrote  from  Nashville:  "They  continued  in  session  (as  I 
am  advised)  about  five  weeks,  but  transacted  little  business,  and 
what  they  did  is  left  incomplete  for  want  of  the  Governor's  sanc- 
tion, Col.  Steele  being  too  much  indisposed  to  attend  to  his  official 
duties."     (See  Steele's  Administration.) 

The  council  had  been  in  session  six  weeks,  August  27,  when  they 
asked  Steele's  advice  about  the  non-appearance  of  Mr.  Bingaman 
in  all  that  time.  The  Secretary  advised  them  to  ask  Mr.  Binga- 
man. Presumably  that  gentleman  did  not  accept  the  appointment. 
John  Ellis  was  president  of  the  council  at  this  session  and  con- 
tinued in  that  honor  until  a  new  council  was  chosen,  five  years 
later.  Probably  also,  he  signed  some  acts.  However,  one  may 
take  the  regular  session  convened  Dec.  1,  1801,  as  the  first  effective 
popular  legislative  body.  Gov.  Claiborne  delivered  an  address  to 
both  houses  and  received  responses  of  hearty  welcome.  He  wrote 
to  the  secretary  of  State  that  from  brief  acquaintance  with  the 
assembly:  "I  hazard  the  opinion  that  it  is  composed  of  honest 
men,  much  attached  to  the  United  States,  and  devoted  to  the  in- 
terests of  this  territory."  At  this  session,  also,  Henry  Hunter  was 
speaker  of  the  house. 

In  the  following  January  Governor  Claiborne  wrote  to  the  sec- 
retary of  state:  "The  legislature  of  the  territory  continues  in 
session,  but  will  probably  adjourn  in  a  few  days.  With  love  of 
country  and  honesty  of  intention  this  body  is  amply  supplied,  but 
there  is  deficiency  in  legislative  information  and  experience,  which 
occasion  much  embarrassment,  and  will,  it  appears,  be  attended 
with  some  public  injury." 

In  February,  1802,  David  Lattimore  was  commissioned  a  mem- 
ber of  the  council  in  place  of  Adam  Bingaman. 

In  July  there  was  an  election  of  representatives,  after  an  excit- 
ing campaign,  and  some  of  the  most  prominent  friends  of  ex-Gov- 
ernor Sargent  were  chosen.  The  members  elect  were:  Adams 
district:  William  Dunbar,  William  Connor,  James  Hoggatt, 
(Name  of  fourth  member  does  not  appear  in  journal  of  1803.) 
Jefferson  district:  Thomas  Calvitt,  John  Girault,  Roger  Dixon, 
Cato  West,  who  resigned  to  become  secretary  and  was  replaced 
by  John  Brooks.  Washington  district:  Nicholas  Perkins,  the 
attorney-general  of  that  district. 

At  the  regular  session  in  December,  1802,  Roger  Dixon  was 
speaker  of  the  house;  John  Ellis,  president  of  the  council.  Wm. 
Gordon  Forman  appears  to  have  been  speaker  in  January.  The 
governor  wrote  in  March,  1803 :  "On  the  12th  instant  the  legisla- 
ture adjourned,  to  meet  again  in  October  next."  An  act  had  been 
passed  to  change  the  session  from  December  to  October. 

The  journals  are  preserved  in  the  Mississippi  archives,  of  the 
second  session  of  the  second  general  assembly,  begun  Oct.  3,  1803, 
the  house  journal  in  writing,  and  council  journal,  as  printed  at 


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MISSISSIPPI  79 

Natchez  by  Andrew  Marschalk.  John  Ellis  was  president  of  the 
council,  William  Connor,  speaker  of  the  house.  Gov.  Claiborne  ad- 
dressed both  houses,  nine  gentlemen  in  all  being  present,  in  the 
"representatives'  chamber,"  and  dwell  with  satisfaction  upon  the 
solution  of  the  Mississippi  river  troubles  and  the  cession  of  Louis- 
iana. He  again  urged  encouragement  of  the  militia,  communicat- 
ing a  letter  from  President  Jefferson  on  the  subject,  and  suggested 
providing  a  special  superior  court  for  Washington  county  and  the 
inspection  of  cotton  in  the  district.  The  session,  which  was 
marked  by  considerable  disagreement  between  the  two  houses, 
closed  Nov.  19. 

No  record  is  available  of  the  representatives  elected  in  1804,  for 
the  3d  general  assembly,  except  that  in  Adams  district,  John 
Steele,  Lyman  Harding,  Philander  Smith  and  Ferdinand  L.  Clai- 
borne were  elected  over  Richard  Butler,  George  Poindexter,  Adam 
Tooly  and  Henry  Hunter,  the  vote  being  224  to  189,  for  the  high- 
est. John  Shaw  was  a  member  from  Jefferson  district,  and  Col. 
Caller  represented  Washington  county.  Smith  and  Steele  served 
as  speaker. 

The  3d  general  assembly,  meeting  for  the  first  time  Dec.  3,  1804, 
the  attempt  to  change  the  time  of  session  evidently  having  failed, 
was  called  upon  to  elect  a  delegate  to  congress  to  succeed  Dr. 
William  Lattimore.  A  joint  session  was  held  for  this  purpose  Jan. 
3,  and  the  vote  was  as  follows :  William  Gordon  Forman,  4  votes ; 
William  Lattimore,  5 ;  Cato  West,  5.  This  remained  the  vote  for 
6  ballots,  and  a  7th  ballot  was  ordered,  but  while  the  members 
were  scattered  about,  the  speaker  declared  the  house  of  repre- 
sentatives adjourned,  and  when  tlie  council  attempted  to  resume 
balloting,  the  house  objected  and  proceeded  with  regular  busi- 
ness. Such  was  the  record  of  the  council  on  the  subject.  It  does 
not  appear  that  another  attempt  was  made  at  election.  Another 
episode  of  interest  was  the  calling  to  account  of  Lyman  Harding, 
one  of  the  representatives,  for  leaving  in  the  council  chamber  a 
burlesque  bill,  entitled  "An  act  for  the  furtherance  of  justice." 
The  speaker  of  the  house  was  requested  "to  take  such  measures 
as  will  do  justice  to  the  injured  and  insulted  feelings  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  council."  Harding  protested  he  meant  nothing  more 
than  "inoffensive  merriment."  The  house  passed  a  resolution  that 
for  the  encouragement  of  industry  and  the  promotion  of  economy 
the  members  of  the  general  assembly  should  at  future  sessions 
wear  clothing  of  "the  homespun  manufacture  of  the  Territory." 
The  session  adjourned  March  8,  1805. 

The  administration  of  Robert  Williams,  (q.  v.)  which  began 
soon  afterward,  was  marked  by  a  stubborn  conflict  between  the 
governor  and  the  general  assembly,  apparently  caused  by  politi- 
cal differences  within  the  Jeffersonian  party. 

A  new  council  was  commissioned  in  1806,  from  the  nominees  of 
the  session  of  1804-05,  as  follows:  Col.  Daniel  Burnet,  Lemuel 
Henry  (of  Washington  county),  Thomas  Hinds,  Maj.  Joseph 
Sessions  and  Col.  Joshua  Baker,  who  was  chosen  president.    Gov. 


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Williams  declared  that  the  people  were  greatly  dissatisfied  with 
this  council. 

Jefferson  district  elected  representatives  in  July,  1806,  as  fol- 
lows: George  W.  Humphreys,  Samuel  Bridges,  William  Snod- 
grass,  Thomas  Fitzpatrick.  The  Adams  county  Republican  cau- 
cus nominated  Col.  John  Ellis,  Alexander  Montgomery,  George 
Poindexter  and  Col.  Henry  Hunter,  and  they  were  probably  all 
elected.     Col.  Ellis  was  elected  speaker. 

Hunter  and  Humphreys  resigned  in  1807,  Poindexter  also  re- 
signed, and  Bridges  died.  Cowles  Mead,  Micajah  Davis,  Stephen 
Bullock  and  Samuel  Cook  were  elected  at  special  elections,  which 
were  very  close,  showing  a  strong  support  of  the  governor. 
This  Fourth  general  assembly,  council  and  house  both,  were  dis- 
solved by  the  governor  March  1,  1808,  and  an  election  ordered  for 
representatives.  This  fell  under  the  new  law  of  Congress,  Jan.  9, 
1808,  providing  an  apportionment  by  the  legislature  and  an  in- 
crease to  twelve  members.  The  assembly,  before  dissolution,  or- 
dered a  census  of  the  Territory,  and  apportioned  the  representa- 
tives as  follows:  Claiborne  2,  Jefferson  2,  Adams  4,  Wilkinson  2, 
Washington  2.  After  a  great  debate  at  a  special  session  in  Sep- 
tember, the  newly  elected  house  voted  as  follows  on  the  motion 
of  Mr.  Bullock  to  nominate  a  new  council:  Aye,  Ferdinand  L. 
Claiborne,  speaker;  Stephen  Bullock,  John  Caller,  Samuel  Cook, 
Henry  D.  Downs,  Lemuel  Henry,  William  Snodgrass,  Philander 
Smith ;  No,  Henry  Cassels,  Henry  Hunter,  Cowles  Mead,  William 
B.  Shields.  But  Claiborne  and  two  others  were  counted  against 
the  governor  in  making  the  nominations,  which  was  done  in  a 
strictly  partisan  way.  The  council  appointed  from  these  nomi- 
nations was  composed  of,  Daniel  Burnet,  James  Lea,  John  Flood 
McGrew,  Alexander  Montgomery,  and  Thomas  Calvit.  Burnet 
was  chosen  president.  The  Fifth  general  assembly,  thus  consti- 
tuted, was  dissolved  by  Gov.  Williams  upon  his  resignation  March 
3,  1809. 

The  nominations  of  the  house  in  July,  1809,  special  session,  for 
the  council,  were  as  follows:  Adams  county:  Alexander  Mont- 
gomery, William  B.  Shields;  Jefferson:  Jonathan  D.  Wilds,  David 
McCaleb ;  Claiborne :  David  Burnet,  Thomas  Barnes ;  Washing- 
ton :  William  Buford,  Joseph  Carson ;  Amite :  Lewis  Perkins ;  Wil- 
kinson: Joseph  Roberts.  President  Madison  appointed  Mont- 
gromery,  McCaleb,  Barnes,  Carson  and  Roberts,  who  were  notified 
Sept.  30. 

Joseph  Roberts  resigned,  November,  1810.  Edward  Ward  was 
appointed  to  fill  the  vacancy,  but  declined.  James  Titus,  of  Madi- 
son county,  was  appointed  in  1812.  and  Nathaniel  Ware  in  1813, 
to  fill  vacancies.  The  council  of  1809,  with  these  changes,  con- 
tinued the  regular  five  years.  The  appointments  in  1814  were: 
Thomas  Barnes,  Joseph  Carson,  Beverly  R.  Grayson,  Howell  W. 
Runnels,  James  Titus.  By  an  act  of  congress,  Oct.  15.  1814,  the 
appointment  of  four  more  members  was  authorized.  The  repre- 
sentatives nominated  Cato  West,  Robert  Cocks,  F.  L.  Claiborne, 


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MISSISSIPPI  81 

Daniel  Williams,  David  Williams,  David  Files,  Robert  Beaty, 
David  Cobb. 

The  journal  of  the  session  of  November,  1816,  notes  the  follow- 
ing councilors  present:  James  Titus,  president;  Howell  W.  Run- 
nels, Beverly  R.  Grayson,  Cato  West  and  Joseph  Carson.  Also 
the  following  appeared  and  took  their  seats  by  appointment  under 
the  act  of  1814 :  Joseph  Taylor,  Thomas  Torrance  and  David  Will- 
iams. Cato  West  had  been  appointed  to  succeed  Thomas  Barnes, 
resigned.  Robert  Beaty,  appointed  in  1815,  was  also  a  member 
of  this  session  of  the  council.  Ferdinand  L.  Claiborne  was  ap- 
pointed (1815)  but  died  about  this  time. 

James  Titus,  of  Madison  county,  was  the  only  member  of  the 
council  whose  residence  was  within  the  limits  of  Alabama  terri- 
tory in  1817  (Wheeler,  History  of  Alabama),  and  during  the  en- 
tire first  session  of  the  general  assembly  of  that  Territory  at  St. 
Stephens,  he  sat  as  the  legislative  council  and  considered  and 
passed  or  disagreed  with  the  acts  of  the  lower  house,  which  was 
composed  of  the  old  Mississippi  representatives  from  Washington, 
Madison,  Monroe,  (and  Montgomery),  Mobile  and  Clarke  coun- 
ties. 

Alexander  Montgomery  was  president  of  the  council,  1809-13; 
Thomas  Barnes,  November,  1814,  1815;  and  James  Titus,  Novem- 
ber, 1816. 

At  the  session  of  the  general  assembly  in  November,  1809,  under 
the  administration  of  Governor  Holmes,  William  Snodgfrass  was 
speaker  of  the  house.  It  seems  to  have  required  a  special  act  of 
congp-ess,  in  1810,  to  give  Madison  county  (Huntsville)  a  repre- 
sentative. 

The  first  session  of  the  Seventh  general  assembly  began  Nov. 
4,  1811,  with  the  following  members  of  the  house  present:  Adams 
county:  Samuel  Postlethwait,  Philander  Smith,  Philip  Hoggatt, 
Joseph  Bowman,  Cowles  Mead  and  Joseph  Sessions.  Jefferson 
county:  Daniel  Beasley,  H.  J.  Balch.  Claiborne:  Allan  Barnes. 
Warren:  Edward  Turner.  Franklin:  George  W.  McConnell. 
Amite:  Lewis  Perkins,  John  Lowry.  Wayne:  James  Patton. 
Washington:  James  Caller,  William  McGrew.  Madison:  Gabriel 
Moore,  Peter  Perkins,  Hugh  McVay.  Cowles  Mead  was  elected 
speaker;  Thomas  B.  Reed,  secretary;  John  Lowry,  doorkeeper; 
Abram  DeFrance,  sergeant  at  arms  of  both  houses.  Members  later 
appearing  were  Joseph  P.  Kennedy,  from  east  of  Pearl  river,  and 
Tanner. 

Barnes,  of  Claiborne,  died  in  1812. 

The  first  session  of  the  Eighth  general  assembly  was  postponed 
to  December,  1813,  on  account  of  the  Creek  war,  which  busied 
some  of  the  members  and  the  governor.  The  membership  of  the 
house  was  as  follows :  Madison :  Gabriel  Moore,  Hugh  McVay, 
James  McCartney ;  Franklin :  Bailey  E.  Chaney ;  Wilkinson :  Dun- 
can Stewart,  John  B.  Posey;  Amite:  Christopher  Rankin,  Henry 
Hanna;  Marion  and  Hancock:  Harmon  Runnels;  Washington: 
Samuel    Smith;    Clarke:    Reuben    Saffold;    Warren:    Henry    D. 

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82  MISSISSIPPI 

Downs ;  Claiborne :  Daniel  Burnet,  Ralph  Regan ;  Jefferson :  Heze- 
kiah  J.  Balch,  John  Burch;  Adams:  David  Greenleaf,  Philip  Hog- 
gatt,  Samuel  Montgomery,  Joseph  Sessions;  William  B.  Shields, 
John  Taylor;  Baldwin:  6enjamin  Baldwin;  Greene  and  Wayne: 
James  Patton;  Hinds,  Snodgrass.  William  Briscoe  was  elected 
to  the  second  section  in  1814,  in  place  of  Regan,  resigned.  Mobile 
and  Jackson  counties  were  represented  in  the  second  session,  by 
William  Crawford,  which  was  the  first  appearance  of  Mobile  in 
the  territorial  legislature.  Daniel  Burnet  was  elected  speaker,  and 
Beverly  G.  Grayson  clerk,  the  latter  being  succeeded  by  Derrick 
Peterson  in  the  second  session. 

The  Ninth  general  assembly,  meeting  in  November,  1815,  had 
the  following  opening  attendance  in  the  house :  Madison :  Gabriel 
Moore,  Hugh  McVay,  William  H.  Winston;  Claiborne:  William 
Briscoe,  James  Wood;  Jefferson:  Joseph  Dunbar,  John  Hopkins; 
Warren:  Henry  D.  Downs;  Adams:  William  D.  Baker,  Anthony 
Campbell,  George  Newman,  Nathan  Swayze,  Edward  Turner, 
James  C.  Wilkins;  Franklin:  John  Shaw;  Wilkinson:  Gerard  C. 
Brandon ;  Amite :  Henry  Hanna,  Jesse  Winborne ;  Marion,  Law- 
rence and  Hancock:  John  Bond,  jr.;  Clarke:  Reuben  Saffold; 
Washington :  Josiah  D.  Lister ;  Wayne  and  Greene :  Josiah  Watts. 
Henry  Hanna  was  elected  speaker  and  Derrick  Peterson  clerk. 
This  session  considered  a  resolution  requesting  the  governor  to 
accept  a  house  in  Natchez  for  the  meeting  of  the  next  legislature, 
but  finally  postponed  it. 

The  last  session  of  the  Territorial  assembly  was  in  November, 
1816. 

Legislature,  1833-76.  Under  the  State  constitution  of  1832,  "the 
legislative  power  of  the  State  shall  be  vested  in  two  distinct 
branches;  the  one  to  be  styled  the  Senate,  the  other  the  House  of 
Representatives,  and  both  together  the  legislature  of  the  State 
of  Mississippi.  And  the  style  of  their  laws  shall  be,  Be  it  en- 
acted by  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Mississippi."  The  previous 
property  qualification  for  membership  was  abolished.  The  con- 
ditions of  eligibility  were,  for  senator — a  citizen  of  the  United 
States,  an  inhabitant  of  the  State  four  years  next  preceding  elec- 
tion,  the  last  year  a  resident  of  the  district  he  appeared  to  repre- 
sent, and  age  of  thirty  years;  for  representative,  the  same  with 
the  lower  time  requirements  of  two  years'  residence,  and  age  of 
twenty-one  years.  The  membership  of  the  house  was  required 
to  be  not  less  than  36  nor  more  than  100;  of  the  senate  not  less 
than  one-fourth  nor  more  than  one-third,  that  of  the  house.  But 
"each  county  shall  always  be  entitled  to  at  least  one  representa- 
tive.** Out  of  this  grew  trouble  when  new  counties  were  being 
created  by  the  wholesale  in  the  Indian  country.  The  senators 
were  to  serve  four  years,  after  the  first  elected,  who  were  divided 
by  lot  into  two  classes,  serving  two  and  five  years.  Thereafter,  at 
regular  biennial  elections,  part  of  the  senators  and  all  the  repre- 
sentatives were  chosen.  The  first  regular  session  under  the  con- 
stitution, began  on  the  first  Monday  in  November,  1833,  and  the 


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MISSISSIPPI  83 

regular  sessions  were  every  two  years  thereafter.  But,  to  put  the 
constitution  into  effect  as  soon  as  possible,  the  schedule  provided 
for  an  election  of  a  legislature  in  December,  1832,  which  convened 
on  the  first  Monday  in  January,  1833,  and  ordered  an  election  for 
all  State  and  county  officers  on  the  first  Monday  of  May,  1833. 

The  office  of  lieutenant-governor  was  abolished ;  the  president 
of  the  senate,  elected  by  that  body,  to  be  the  successor  of  the  gov- 
ernor when  that  office  became  vacant.  The  senate  elected  Charles 
Lynch  president  and  David  Dickson,  secretary.  Joseph  Dunbar, 
Adam  L.  Bingaman,  A.  M.  Keehan  and  David  Pemble  were  can- 
didates for  speaker  of  the  house.  Bingaman  withdrew  after  the 
9th  ballot,  Keegan  being  in  the  lead,  and  on  the  15th  ballot  Pem- 
ble was  elected. 

The  members  of  the  House  in  the  legislature  of  January,  1833, 
were:  Adams — ^Adam  L.  Bingaman,  William  Vannerson.  Amite 
— David  Pemble,  William  Vannorman.  Claiborne — John  A. 
Barnes,  Benjamin  F.  Stockton.  Copiah — Barnabas  Allen,  John 
Beasley.  Covington — Elam  S.  Regan.  Franklin — Orin  Shurtleff. 
Green — ^David  McRae.  Hinds — William  C.  Demoss,  Alexander 
Morrison.  Jones — Samuel  Ellis.  Jackson — John  McDonald.  Jef- 
ferson— Philip  Dickson,  Joseph  Dunbar.  Hancock — Burwell  B. 
Brewer.  Lawrence — ^Aloysius  M.  Keegan.  Marion — Charles  D. 
Learned.  Lowndes — ^Tilghman  M.  Tucker.  Madison — Andrew  E. 
Batie.  Monroe — ^John  Bell.  Perry — ^Abner  Carter.  Simpson — 
James  Powell.  Pike — ^Jesse  Harper,  William  G.  Martin.  Rankin — 
Nathan  G.  Howard.  Warren — ^William  Vick.  Wilkinson — Gor- 
don G.  Boyd,  Francis  R.  Richardson.  Washington — ^Robert  P. 
Shelby.  Yazoo — ^David  Vance,  James  C.  Bole.  Wayne — John  A. 
Edwards. 

The  journals  of  the  legislature  of  this  period  are  not  all  avail- 
able. There  was  a  session  in  November,  1833.  In  the  period 
before  1836,  Gen.  P.  Briscoe  was  president,  and  A.  L.  Bingaman, 
speaker.  The  time  of  meeting  was  changed  to  the  first  Monday  in 
January.  In  the  latter  part  of  1835  there  was  a  special  session  of 
the  senate  to  elect  a  president,  and  the  choice  fell  upon  John  A. 
Quitman.  (See  Runnel's  administration.)  In  January,  1836,  Will- 
iam Van  Norman  was  president  pro  tem.  until  the  inauguration 
of  Gov.  Lynch.  In  the  house,  after  several  ballots,  John  L.  Irwin 
was  elected  speaker  over  Bingaman,  Whig.  At  the  extra  session 
in  January,  1837,  occurred  the  trouble  about  the  admission  of  rep- 
resentatives from  new  counties,  and  a  special  session  was  called 
to  meet  April  7,  on  account  of  the  bank  failures.  (See  Lynch's 
Administration.)  A.  G.  McNutt  was  elected  president  on  the  16th 
ballot  in  January;  John  L.  Irwin,  speaker.  At  the  reg^ilar  session 
in  January,  1838,  A.  L.  Bingaman  was  elected  president  on  the 
19th  ballot.  This  was  the  first  full  senate  of  the  State  under  the 
constitution  of  1832.  John  W.  King  was  elected  speaker. 

In  1840,  the  senate  on  44th  ballot  elected  George  B.  Augustus 
president.  Jesse  Speight  was  elected  speaker  of  the  house.  In 
January,  1841,  James  Alexander  Ventress,  speaker,  vice  Speight, 


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84  MISSISSIPPI 

resigned.  George  B.  Augustus  continued  as  president.  In  his 
message  to  the  legislature  of  this  year  Gov.  McNutt  said:  "This 
is  the  seventh  session  of  the  legislature  which  has  assembled  dur- 
ing the  last  five  years.  The  four  extra  sessions  have  cost  the  State 
alK>ut  $200,000  and  have  bankrupted  the  State  treasury.  A  careful 
examination  of  all  the  acts  of  the  special  sessions  will  demonstrate 
that  they  have  been  productive  of  little  good  and  much  evil."  The 
plain  intent  of  the  constitution  of  1832  was  biennial  sessions. 

In  1842,  Jesse  Speight  was  elected  president  of  the  senate  on 
the  11th  ballot.  Robert  W.  Roberts,  speaker  of  the  house.  A 
special  session  of  this  legislature  was  convened  July  10,  1843,  on 
actount  of  the  Graves  defalcation.  Gen.  Speight  having  resigned. 
Gen.  Arthur  Fox  was  elected  president  pro  tem.  In  1844  Jesse 
Speight  was  president;  J.  L.  Totten  speaker.  In  1846  George  T. 
Swann  was  president;  James  Whitfield,  speaker.  In  1848  George 
T.  Swann  was  president;  John  J.  McRae,  speaker.  In  1850,  Dab- 
rey  Lipscomb,  of  Lowndes,  was  president;  John  I.  Guion,  presi- 
dent pro  tem.;  John  J.  McRae,  speaker.  (See  Guion-Whitfield 
Adm.)  At  a  special  session,  November,  1851,  James  Whitfield 
was  elected  president,  continuing  in  1852,  when  William  S.  Pat- 
ton,  was  speaker.  In  1854  John  J.  Pettus  was  president,  J.  M. 
Acker,  president  pro  tem.;  Hiram  Cassedy  speaker.  In  1856-57, 
Pettus  continued  as  president  and  William  S.  Barry  was  speaker. 
James  Drane  was  president,  1858-65;  J.  L.  Autry  was  speaker  in 
1858,  J.  A.  P.  Campbell  in  1859-60,  William  A.  Lake,  January, 
1861,  J.  P.  Scales,  November,  1861-63,  Lock  E.  Houston,  1863-65. 

The  legislature  had  three  sessions  in  1861,  January,  July  and 
November.  In  1863  the  capitol  was  abandoned,  and  the  sessions 
were  at  various  places.  (See  Pettus  and  Oark  administrations.) 
"In  attempting  to  meet  the  exigencies  of  war  the  legislature  did 
not  always  observe  strictly  the  limits  set  to  its  action  by  the  con- 
stitution, and  in  fact  seems  to  have  amended  it  by  simple  resolu- 
tion, as  occasion  demanded.  Thus  the  following  enacting  clause 
appears  in  a  statute  of  April  5,-1864:  'Be  it  enacted  that  the  con- 
stitution of  Mississippi  be  and  the  same  is  hereby  altered  and 
amended,'  etc.  In  1861  an  act  was  passed  amending  an  ordinance 
of  the  convention."  (Garner,  Reconstruction,  43.)  In  1864  the 
legislature  was  in  session  in  March  and  April,  and  again  in  August 
at  Macon.  At  the  latter  session  the  governor  was  authorized  to 
sell  State  bonds  to  the  amount  of  $2,000,000,  to  form  a  military 
iund.  During  the  session  at  Columbus,  February  and  l^l^rrch, 
1865,  the  governor  was  then  authorized  to  dispose  of  $500,000  of 
the  bonds  above  named,  "for  such  premium  as  he  may  be  able 
to  obtain  in  the  market,"  and  sell  out  the  Confederate  bonds  in 
the  treasury  "for  such  price  as  he  may  be  able  to  obtain  for  the 
same."  In  March,  1865,  though  it  was  a  portentous  epoch,  the  leg- 
islature incorporated  two  "female  institutes"  at  Canton  and 
Crystal  Springs,  and  the  Pioneer  machine  company.  This  legisla- 
ture allowed  the  secretary  of  the  senate  $40,  the  clerk  of  the  house 
$50,  and  doorkeepers  $15  a  day.    But  the  members  resolved  to  ac- 


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MISSISSIPPI  85 

cept  only  their  expenses  of  travelling  and  attendance.  Two  months 
later  the  last  session  of  the  Confederate  era  met  at  Jackson,  May 
18.  It  followed  close  upon  the  heels  of  the  surrender  at  Meridian 
(see  Clark  Adm.),  and  was  for  the  purpose  of  preparing  for  restor- 
ation to  the  Union.  But  the  session  did  not  survive  the  day,  the 
United  States  government  not  admitting  the  survival  of  the  civil 
governments  existing  during  the  Confederacy.    (See  Clark's  Adm.) 

The  next  legislature  was  the  last  elected  by  an  exclusively  white 
vote.  It  met  "at  the  State  House,  in  the  city  of  Jackson,  on  Mon- 
day, the  16th  day  of  October,  A.  D.  1865,  and  the  sovereignty  of 
the  State  of  Mississippi  the  forty-ninth,  and  the  ninetieth  year  of 
the  Independence  of  the  United  States  of  America."  (House  Jour- 
nal.) Col.  J.  M.  Simonton  was  elected  president  of  the  senate,  and 
Gen.  Samuel  J.  Gholson  speaker  of  the  house.  The  vote  for  speaker 
was  Gholson  38,  Alcorn  26,  Simrall  9.  After  a  session  of  45  days 
the  legislature  adjourned  Dec.  6.  It 'was  called  in  special  session  in 
1866,  and  was  in  session  42  days,  Oct.  15,  1866  to  Feb.  21,  1867, 
with  an  adjournment  Oct.  30  to  Jan.  21. 

After  this,  under  the  congressional  reconstruction,  there  was  no 
legislature  until  the  one  elected  in  November,  1869,  the  negro 
population  sharing  in  the  elective  franchise.  This  legislature  con- 
tained nearly  40  negro  members,  including  5  of  the  senators.  Some 
of  these  had  a  little  education  and  some  were  unable  to  read  or 
write.  The  ntgro  members,  with  those  whites  who  had  been  sol- 
diers of  the  Union  army,  and  some  native  white  republicans,  con- 
stituted the  majority.  The  senate  was  divided,  36  Republicans, 
7  Democrats;  house,  82  Republicans,  25  Democrats. 

This  legislature  convened  in  provisional  session,  Jan.  11,  1870, 
by  the  call  of  Gen.  Ames,  commander  Fourth  military  district  and 
provisional  governor.  W.  M.  Hancock  was  chosen  president  pro 
tem.,  and  he  and  the  senate  were  sworn  in  by  Chief  Justice  Peyton. 
On  the  third  day,  R.  C.  Powers,  lieutenant-governor  elect,  con- 
sented to  be  sworn  in,  and  by  virtue  of  his  office,  was  president  of 
the  senate,  as  before  1832.  The  house  elected  F.  E.  Franklin  repre- 
sentative from  Yazoo,  who  was  a  recent. immigrant  from  New  York, 
as  speaker.  The  Fourteenth  and  Fifteenth  amendments  were  rat- 
ified at  the  end  of  the  first  week.  United  States  senators  were 
elected,  (q.  v.)  and  the  provisional  session  then  adjourned  Jan. 
20,  until  "the  second  Tuesday  after  the  admission  of  the  State 
into  the  Federal  Union."  Accordingly  the  legislature  met  March 
8.  1870,  with  the  State  fully  recognized  and  considered  as  "in  th^ 
Union,"  for  the  first  time  since  January,  1861.  The  session  closed 
July  21,  1870.  The  provisional  session  is  noteworthy  for  the  first 
and  only  instance  in  which  the  legislature  acknowledged  the  favor 
of  railroad  transportation  by  resolution  of  thanks.  The  session  of 
1870  was  the  longest  the  State  had  yet  known.  The  session  lasted 
four  months  and  a  half.  The  mileage  of  members  was  $29,664  in 
1870  and  $22,128  in  1861.  The  per  diem  of  members  in  1870  was 
$166,632. 

The  session  beginning  Jan.  3,  1871,  was  the  first  regular  one 


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86  MISSISSIPPI 

under  the  constitution  of  1869,  requiring  annual  sessions  beginning 
on  the  first  Tuesday  after  the  first  Monday  in  January.  Senator 
Dowd  was  elected  president  of  the  senate,  pro  tern.,  when  the 
lieutenant-governor,  Powers,  became  governor,  and  H.  W.  Warren, 
recently  of  Massachusetts,  was  elected  speaker  of  the  house.  He 
was  clerk  in  1873.  This  session  did  not  adjourn  until  May  12, 
(a  little  over  four  months)  having  on  hand  the  task  of  adopting  a 
revised  code. 

The  legislature  of  1872  was  in  session  from  Jan.  2  until  April 
4.  Joseph  Bennett  was  president  pro  tern,  of  the  senate;  John 
R.  Lynch  (negro),  speaker  of  the  house.  The  session  of  1873  be- 
gan in  January  and  ended  April  19.  In  the  legislature  of  1874, 
was  the  culmination  of  negro  representation.  Lieut.-Gov.  A.  K. 
Davis,  a  negro,  presided  over  the  senate,  and  the  house  elected 
another  negro,  I.  D.  Shadd,  of  Vicksburg,  speaker.  The  political 
division  was,  senate,  25  Republicans,  12  Democrats;  house,  77 
Republicans,  36  Democrats,  and  several  Independents.  There  were 
9  negro  members  in  the  senate  and  55  in  the  house.  There  was  a 
special  session,  December  17-24,  1874,  upon  call  of  the  governor, 
which  appointed  a  committee  to  investigate  the  Vicksburg  riot. 
(q.  V.)  The  session  of  1875,  was  January  5  to  March  6,  Shadd 
speaker.  Another  special  session  met  July  27,  1875,  to  amend  the 
registration  law. 

The  legislature  of  1876  was  the  product  of  the  political  revolution 
of  1875.  The  senate  had  26  Democrats  to  11  Republicans  (5 
negroes);  the  house,  97  Democrats,  19  Republicans  (15  negjoes). 
The  impeachments  of  Gov.  Ames  and  other  State  officers  were  the 
exciting  features  of  the  session  which  began  January  4  and  ended 
April  15.  Hugh  M.  Street  was  speaker  of  the  house.  Lieutenant- 
Governor  Davis  presided  over  the  senate  until  his  impeachment 
in  February,  when  Senator  John  M.  Stone,  who  had  been  elected 
president  pro  tem.  by  acclamation  on  the  first  day,  took  the  chair. 
When  Stone  became  governor  W.  H.  Sims  was  made  president 
pro  tem. 

Legislature,  1876-1906.  The  constitution  of  1869  continued  in 
force,  except  as  amended,  until  1890.  The  legislature  of  1876 
met  again  in  1877.  Its  political  complexion  was:  Senate,  26  Demo- 
crats, 11  Republicans,  House,  97  Democrats,  19  Republicans.  H. 
M.  Street  was  speaker ;  W.  H.  Sims,  president  of  the  senate. 

It  required  five  ballots  to  elect  a  speaker  of  the  house  in  1878, 
W.  A.  Percy,  W.  H.  H.  Tison,  W.  F.  Tucker  and  M.  H.  Whitaker 
being  the  candidates,  and  Percy  was  finally  successful.  George  M. 
Gevan  was  elected  clerk.  Reuben  O.  Reynolds  was  president  of 
the  senate  until  Lieut.-Gov.  W.  H.  Sims  was  inaugurated.  This 
session  continued  48  days.  Part  of  its  important  business  was  to 
amend  the  constitution,  as  approved  by  popular  vote,  so  that  the 
sessions  should  be  biennial,  beginning  in  1878.  Accordingly  the 
next  session  began  in  January,  1880. 

The  legislature  of  1880  contained  15  members  of  the  National 
or  Greenback  party,  3   Independents  and  6  Republicans.     B.   F. 


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Johns  was  speaker  of  the  house.  The  session  continued  53  days, 
and  was  memorable  for  the  election  of  Senator  George;  the  adop- 
tion of  Campbell's  Code;  and  the  discussion  of  the  Humphreys' 
railroad  bill. 

In  1882  the  Greenbackers  had  only  two  members,  and  the  Re- 
publicans 18.  The  opposition  representation  in  the  legislature 
from  this  time  rapidly  dwindled.  In  1888  the  legislature  was  al- 
most solidly  Democratic.  The  speaker  in  1882  was  W.  H.  H. 
Tison;  in  1884,  W.  M.  Inge;  in  1886,  J.  H.  Sharp;  in  1888,  C.  B. 
Mitchell ;  in  1890,  J,  S.  Madison. 

Under  the  constitution  of  1890  both  the  representatives  and 
senators  are  elected  every  four  years.  There  is  a  series  of  regular 
sessions,  every  four  years,  beginning  in  1892,  and  a  series  of  special 
sessions  every  four  years,  beginning  in  1894,  the  special  sessions 
being  limited  to  30  days  unless  the  governor  finds  it  desirable  to 
extend  the  session  for  a  specific  number  of  days,  nothing  to  be  con- 
sidered at  such  special  sessions  but  appropriation  and  revenue 
bills,  "except  such  other  matters  as  may  be  acted  upon  at  an  extra- 
ordinary session  called  by  the  governor,  the  compensation  for  spec- 
ial sessions  to  be  limited  to  $6  per  diem  and  mileage."  All  members 
are  required  to  take  oath  that  they  "will  not  vote  for  any  measure 
or  person  because  of  a  promise  of  any  other  member  of  this  legis- 
lature to  vote  for  any  measure  or  person,  or  as  a  means  of  influ- 
encing him  or  them  to  do  so."  Liability  as  a  principal  for  public 
moneys,  conviction  of  bribery,  perjury  or  other  infamous  crime, 
and  bribery  in  connection  with  elections  and  appointments,  are  dis- 
qualifications for  membership.  The  powers  of  the  legislature  are 
more  definitely  stated  than  in  any  previous  constitution.  Appro- 
priation bills  are  carefully  regulated,  their  passage  forbidden  in 
the  last  five  days  of  the  session,  and  the  governor  authorized  to 
approve  them  in  part  and  veto  them  in  part.  The  veto  of  any 
measure  may  be  overcome  by  a  two-thirds  vote  in  each  house. 
If  the  governor  does  not  return  a  bill  within  five  days  it  becomes 
a  law  without  his  signature,  unless  the  legislature  adjourns  mean- 
while, "in  which  case  it  shall  become  a  law  unless  sent  back  within 
three  days  after  the  beginning  of  the  next  session  of  the  legfisla- 
ture." 

The  legislature  is  particularly  charged  with  legislation  for  cer- 
tain ends,  such  as  the  limiting  of  land  holding  by  aliens  and  cor- 
porations. A  standing  committee  in  each  house  on  local  and 
private  legislation  is  required,  through  which  all  such  measures 
must  pass.  Private,  special  and  local  laws  are  forbidden  in  a  large 
number  of  particulars  (Section  90).  There  are  absolute  prohibi- 
tions of  a  number  of  functions  previously  exercised.  "The  legis- 
lature shall  not  elect  any  other  than  its  own  officers,  State  librarian 
and  United  States  senators."  Included  in  the  constitution  was  an 
apportionment  among  the  counties  of  133  representatives,  includ- 
ing several  "floaters"  among  counties,  and  representatives  of  the 
cities  of  Meridian  and  Natchez.  The  counties  were  districted  for 
45  senators.    A  State  census  was  ordered  in  1895  and  every  ten 


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88  MISSISSIPPI 

years  thereafter,  as  a  basis  of  new  apportionment  by  the  legislature. 
All  sessions  begin  on  the  first  Tuesday  after  the  first  Monday  in 
January. 

The  legislature  of  1892  was  occupied  mainly  with  consideration 
of  the  codified  laws  and  new  laws  presented  by  the  commissioners 
under  the  constitution  of  1890.  The  next  code  session  was  in 
1906.  There  was  an  extraordinary  session  in  1897,  and  with  this 
exception  the  sessions  have  been  biennial. 

At  the  congressional  election  in  1900  an  amendment  to  the  con- 
stitution was  adopted,  and  the  same  was  inserted  in  the  constitu- 
tion by  the  legislature  of  1902,  providing  that  the  legislature  may 
apportion  senators  and  representatives  on  the  basis  of  the  Federal 
decennial  census.  At  such  apportionments  each  county  shall  have 
at  least  one  representative.  Virtually,  three  new  political  sub- 
divisions are  made,  and  required  to  have  equal  representation,  re- 
gardless of  population.  The  first  section  is  composed  of  the  coun- 
ties of  Tishomingo,  Alcorn,  Prentiss,  Lee,  Itawamba,  Tippah, 
Unions  Benton,  Marshall,  Lafayette,  Pontotoc^  Monroe,  Chicka- 
saw, Claiborne,  Yalobusha,  Grenada,  Carroll,  Montgomery,  Choc- 
taw, Webster,  Clay,  Lowndes  and  Oktibbeha,  and  any  counties 
that  may  be  sub-divided  therefrom.  The  second  section  is  com- 
posed of  the  counties  of  Attala,  Winston,  Noxubee,  Kemper,  Leake, 
Neshoba,  Lauderdale,  Newton,  Scott,  Rankin,  Clarke,  Jasper, 
Smith,  Sunflower,  Copiah,  Franklin,  Lincoln,  Lawrence,  Covington, 
Jones,  Wayne,  Greene,  Perry,  Marion,  Pike,  Pearl  River,  Hancock, 
Harrison  and  Jackson,  and  any  counties  that  may  be  sub-divided 
therefrom.  The  third  section  is  that  embraced  within  the  present 
territory  of  the  remaining  counties  of  the  State.  Each  section  is 
to  "never  have  less  than  &  representatives,"  and  any  change  in  the 
number  of  representatives  is  to  be  apportioned  equally  to  the  three 
sections.  The  number  of  representatives  is  limited  between  100 
and  133,  the  number  of  senators  between  30  and  45. 

Under  the  laws  now  in  force  the  members  of  the  legislature  re- 
ceive $400  salary  for  each  regular  session,  and  10  cents  mileage 
each  way,  and  $5  a  day  for  special  sessions.  The  regular  sessions 
terminate  at  60  days. 

The  lieutenant-governors  (president  of  the  senate)  since  1876 
have  been:  William  H.  Sims,  1878-82;  G.  D.  Shands,  1882-90;  M. 
M.  Evans,  1890-96;  J.  H.  Jones,  1896-1900;  James  T.  Harrison, 
1900-1904;  John  Prentiss  Carter,  1904.  The  speakers  of  the  house 
since  1890  have  been:  H.  M.  Street,  1892;  James  K.  Vardaman, 
1894;  J.  F.  McCool,  1896,  1897,  1898;  A.  J.  Russell,  1900,  1902;  E. 
N.  Thomas,  1904,  1906. 

The  legislature  of  1906  created  a  new  department  of  State  gov- 
ernment, called  the  Department  of  Agriculture  and  Commerce, 
and  placed  under  the  direction  of  a  Commissioner.  It  was  provided 
that  the  Commissioner  be  appointed  by  the  governor  to  serve  until 
the  first  general  election  in  1907,  and  afterwards  be  elected  by  the 
people.  Hon.  H.  E.  Blakeslee  was  appointed  Commissioner  of  the 
new  Department.    At  this  session  of  the  legislature  a  change  was 


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MISSISSIPPI  89 

made  in  the  management  of  the  State  convict  farms,  the  control 
being  placed  in  the  hands  of  three  Trustees,  appointed  by  the  gov- 
ernor to  serve  until  the  first  general  election  in  1907,  and  after- 
wards elected  by  the  people  together  with  a  Superintendent  ap- 
pointed by  the  governor.  An  act  providing  for  a  geological  Sur- 
vey was  passed.  Two  new  circuit  court  districts  were  created  to 
meet  the  demands  of  the  rapid  development  in  the  Southern  part 
of  the  State.  In  the  same  section  of  the  State  two  new  counties 
were  formed;  Jefferson  Davis,  taken  from  Lawrence  and  Coving- 
ton, and  named  in  honor  of  the  President  of  the  Southern  Confed- 
eracy, and  Forrest,  embracing  the  second  court  district  of  Perry 
county,  and  named  in  honor  of  Gen.  N.  B.  Forrest  of  the  Confed- 
erate army.  The  greater  part  of  the  session  of  1906  was  given  to 
the  adoption  of  a  new  code  of  laws  which  was  compiled  by  A.  H|. 
Whitfield,  T.  C.  Catchings  and  W.  H.  Hardy,  and  to  be  known  as 
the  Mississippi  Code  of  1906.  During  this  session,  among  other 
things,  a  liberal  appropriation  was  made  for  the  support  of  Beau- 
voir,  the  Confederate  soldiers*  home,  and  the  sum  of  $50,000  was 
appropriated  for  the  erection  of  a  monument  in  the  National  Park 
at  Vicksburg  in  honor  of  the  Confederate  soldiers  of  Mississippi. 

Lda,  a  postoffice  of  Wilkinson  county. 

Leland,  an  incorporated  post-town  of  Washington  county  on  the 
Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  and  the  Southern  Ry.,  about 
10  miles  east  of  Greenville.  The  land  on  which  Leland  stands  was 
patented  in  1834.  The  first  settlement  was  made  in  1847  by  Judge 
James  Rucks.  In  1884  the  town  was  laid  out  on  the  advent  of  the 
railroad.  It  is  a  railroad  junction  point,  and  has  a  telegraph  office, 
an  express  office,  a  newspaper  office,  and  two  banks.  The  Enter- 
prise is  a  Democratic  weekly  established  in  1901,  of  which  Hill  & 
Hanson  are  the  editors  and  publishers.  The  Bank  of  Leland  was 
established  in  1899  with  a  capital  of  $15,000,  and  the  Delta  Bank  of 
Leland  was  established  in  1903 ;  capital  $50,000.  Leland  lies  in  the 
fertile  Delta  region,  and  is  a  cotton  shipping  point  of  importance. 
Among  its  industries  are  a  large  saw  mill,  a  large  cotton  seed  oil 
mill  with  a  daily  capacity  of  100  tons  of  cotton  seed;  the  Leland 
Ice  and  Cold  Storage  Co.,  capital  stock  $20,000,  capacity  20  tons 
daily;  bottling  works;  Leland  Compress  Co.,  capital  stock  $50,- 
000;  Leland  Lumber  Co.,  capital  stock  $10,000.  There  are  five 
public  school  buildings  for  whites;  also  one  school  for  colored 
pupils.  There  are  five  churches;  two  for  whites  and  three  for 
blacks.  The  city  owns  its  electric  light  and  water  works.  The 
Leland  Cotton  Co.,  organized  in  1903  for  the  purpose  of  selling 
cotton,  is  the  only  organization  of  its  kind  in  existence.  Population 
in  1900,  762 ;  estimated  in  1906  at  2,000. 

Lemon,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northern  part  of  Smith  county,  9 
miles  north  of  Raleigh,  the  county  seat,  and  15  miles  south  of 
Forest,  the  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town.  Population  in 
1900,   100. 

Lena,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Leake  county,  12 
miles  south  of  Carthage,  the  county  seat.    The  station  of  Raworth, 


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90  MISSISSIPPI 

on  the  A.  &  V.  R.  R.,  15  miles  to  the  south,  is  the  nearest  railroad 
town.     Population  in  1900,  63. 

Lenoir,  a  postoffice  in  the  northwestern  part  of  Marion  county, 
situated  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Pearl  river,  10  miles  northwest 
of  Columbia,  the  county  seat. 

Leonia,  a  postoffice  of  Jasper  county,  5  miles  south  of  Paulding, 
the  county  seat. 

Leota  Landing,  a  post-hamlet  of  Washington  county,  situated 
on  the  Mississippi  river,  about  25  miles  south  of  Greenville,  the 
county  seat.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice.  Population  in 
1900,  50. 

L'Epinay.  M.  de  L'Epinay  was  appointed  governor  of  Louisiana 
by  Crozat  in  1716,  to  succeed  Cadillac,  and  served  in  that  capacity 
for  a  period  of  about  eleven  months.  He  arrived  in  Mobile  Bay  on 
the  9th  of  March,  1717,  accompanied  by  M.  Hubert,  commissioned 
to  succeed  M.  Duclos  as  Commissaire  Ordinnateur;  also  three 
companies  of  infantry,  commanded  by  MM.  Aruths  de  Bonil,  de 
Loze  and  Gouris,  and  fifty  other  persons,  among  whom  were  MM. 
d'Artagnette,  Dubreuil,  Guenot,  Trefontaine,  and  Mossy,  wealthy 
and  prominent  Frenchmen,  who  came  to  establish  colonies  in  Lou- 
isiana on  their  several  concessions.  De  L'Epinay  brought  Bien- 
ville the  cross  of  St.  Louis,  which  the  king  of  France  had  granted 
him  as  a  special  reward  for  his  long  and  distinguished  services  in 
the  interest  of  French  ascendency  on  the  Mississippi.  La  Harpe, 
in  his  Journal,  tells  us  that  "the  commander  of  the  Paon  (one 
of  the  vessels  which  brought  the  new  governor  and  his  comt)an- 
ions),  who  had  lately  entered  the  port  of  Dauphin  Island  by  a 
channel  of  twenty-one  feet  of  water,  discovered  in  two  days  after 
that  it  had  changed,  and  he  was  compelled  to  unload  and  go  out 
by  the  Grand  Gosier  Channel,  which  had  only  a  depth  of  ten  feet." 
This  sudden  chocking  of  the  Dauphin  channel,  no  doubt,  was  one 
of  the  principal  reasons  for  the  reestablishment  of  the  headquar- 
ters of  the  colony  in  the  Bay  of  Biloxi  (see  Bienville.)  De  L'Epinay 
seems  to  have  engaged  at  once  in  the  same  dissensions  with  Bien- 
ville as  his  predecessor,  Cadillac.  He  was  ignorant  of  conditions 
in  the  new  world  and  caused  some  regulations  to  be  enforced  in 
opposition  to  the  wishes  of  Bienville,  which  created  gjeat  dissatis- 
faction. As  above  stated,  De  L'Epinay's  tenure  of  office  was  brief. 
Crozat  surrendered  his  charter  in  1717,  and  in  August  of  that  year, 
the  "Western  Company''  succeeded  to  its  privileges.  On  the  9th 
of  February,  1718,  the  ships  Dauphin,  Vigilant  and  Neptune,  be- 
longing to  the  Western  Company,  arrived  at  Dauphin  Island,  and 
brought  orders  for  the  recall  of  De  L'Epinay  and  the  appointment 
of  Bienville  as  governor-general. 

Lerma,  a  postoffice  of  Webster  county,  8  miles  northwest  of 
Walthall,  the  county  seat. 

Lespideza,  a  post-hamlet  of  Panola  county,  8  miles  east  of  Sardis, 
one  of  the  two  seats  of  justice  for  Panola  county,  and  the  nearest 
railroad  and  banking  town.     Population  in  1900,  40. 

Lessley,  a  postoffice  of  Wilkinson  county. 


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Lcttie^  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Winston  county, 
about  14  miles  southeast  of  Louisville,  the  county  seat.  Popula- 
tion in  1900,  50. 

Levees.  Since  the  advent  of  the  white  man  into  the  Mississippi 
Valley,  efforts  have  been  made  to  confine  the  mighty  flood  of  the 
Mississippi  within  its  channel  by  means  of  levees,  or  dikes  of 
earthwork.  Owing  to  the  sinuosities  in  the  ever  changing  bed  of 
the  stream,  the  Mississippi  washes  the  western  boundary  of  the 
State  for  a  distance  of  500  miles.  From  the  standpoint  of  protec- 
tion against  the  overflow  of  flood  waters,  this  distance  constitutes 
the  "danger  line"  of  the  State  of  Mississippi.  The  river  has  been 
likened,  with  its  tributaries,  to  a  huge  funnel,  with  a  small  tapering 
spout.  It  drains  a  total  area  of  1,240,038  square  miles,  or  nearly 
800,000,000  acres.  The  spout  of  the  funnel  is  really  only  half  a 
spout,  open  at  the  upper  half  and  semi-cylindrical  at  the  bottom, 
which  permits  the  flood  waters  to  escape  freely  over  the  sides.  The 
Yazoo  basin  of  Mississippi  is  one  of  the  largest  basins  in  the  valley 
of  the  great  river.  It  has  a  length  of  190  miles  and  a  width  of  more 
than  50.  Its  area  is  6,650  square  miles,  all  of  which  is  subject  to 
overflow  except  a  narrow  ridge  along  the  upper  Yazoo.  Lower 
down  are  278  square  miles  of  alluvial  lands  in  the  Homochitto 
basin,  making  about  7,000  square  miles  in  the  State  subject  to 
inundation. 

The  necessity  of  protecting  this  great  area  of  over  4,250,000  acres 
of  rich  land,  extending  along  the  river  front  for  340  miles,  from 
the  annual  visitation  of  flood  waters  through  a  system  of  levees 
or  dikes  is  of  prime  importance  to  the  State  of  Mississippi.  Scien- 
tists, engineers  and  governments,  for  more  than  a  century,  have 
sought  the  proper  solution  of  the  Mississippi  river  problem.  This 
problem  has  been  all  the  more  difficult,  when  it  is  borne  in  mind 
that  below  the  junction  of  the  Ohio,  for  more  than  1,100  miles, 
the  great  river  sweeps  around  a  succession  of  great  bends,  with 
a  deep,  wide  and  rapid  current  of  five  or  six  miles  an  hour  during 
the  floods.  Its  surface  is  nearly  on  a  level  with  the  alluvial  banks, 
which  continually  yield  more  or  less  to  the  power  of  the  stream. 
In  all  this  distance  are  no  hills  or  mountains  and  only  a  few  lone 
bluffs,  and  much  of  the  flood  area  is  from  five  to  ten  feet  below  the 
level  of  the  river  banks.  Indeed,  the  peculiarity  of  the  immediate 
banks  of  the  river  being  higher  than  the  alluvial  plain,  is  charac- 
teristic of  the  whole  course  of  the  lower  Mississippi.  In  extreme 
floods,  when  not  protected  by  levees,  these  low  grounds  were  cov- 
ered by  the  redundant  waters  nearly  to  the  level  of  the  river  surface. 
As  the  surface  of  the  river  approached  the  high  water  mark  the 
water  escaped  in  a  thousand  places,  through  "low  banks,  outlet 
bayous,  sloughs,  or  crevasses,  becoming  an  immense  forest  lake  and 
enclosing  thousands  of  islands  and  ridges  of  alluvion  only  a. few 
feet  above  the  water  level."  No  wonder  the  minds  of  men  were 
early  directed  toward  the  prevention  of  these  recurring  overflows, 
and  the  protection  of  the  rich  arable  lands.  The  period  of  floods 
in  the  lower   Mississippi  varies  from  four  to  nine   months.     It 


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generally  commences  in  December  or  January  and  lasts  until  June 
or  July. 

The  extreme  rise  and  fall  of  the  Mississippi  varies  greatly  at 
different  points.  It  is  greatest  between  the  Ohio  and  Lake  Prov- 
idence, one  hundred  and  thirty-five  miles  below  the  mouth  of  the 
Arkansas.    It  is  least  from  the  mouth  up  to  New  Orleans. 

A, close  study  of  the  records  shows  that  extraordinary  floods 
have  occurred  on  the  Mississippi  during  the  following  years :  1782, 
1797;  1809,  1815,  18^3,  1828,  1844,  1849-51,  1858-59,  1862,  1874, 
1880, 1881,  1882, 1890,  1891,  1892,  1893,  1897,  1899,  and  1903.  Quot- 
ing from  the  Bulletin  of  the  American  Geographical  Society  for 
1904,  p.  353,  we  read  "The  floods  of  March  and  April,  1903,  which 
occurred  in  the  lower  Ohio  and  Mississippi,  were  notable  because 
of  the  unprecedentedly  high  stages  which  occurred  in  the  latter 
river.  The  stages  of  the  water  were,  with  a  few  exceptions,  great- 
er than  any  before  known  from  Memphis  to  the  Passes,  exceeding 
the  previous  highest  stages  (principally  those  of  1897)  from  0.9 
feet  at  New  Orleans  to  2.8  feet  at  Memphis.  Where  the  crest 
stage  was  below  the  maximum  stage  of  1897  the  deficiency  was  usu- 
ally due  to  crevasses  in  the  levees."  Speaking  of  the  great  floods 
of  1882,  1897,  and  1903  the  report  goes  on  to  say:  "At  Memphis 
the  river  was  above  the  danger  line  in  1903  for  54  days,  as  against 
65  and  53  days  in  1882  and  1897  respectively,  but  it  remained  at 
38  feet  or  higher  for  13  days,  and  at  40  feet  for  two  days  in  1903 ; 
while  in  1882  and  1897  the  highest  stages  were  35.2  and  37.1  feet 
respectively.  At  New  Orleans  the  river  was  at  or  above  the  danger 
line  (16)  feet  in  1882  for  six  days,  with  a  maximum  stage  of  16.2 
feet ;  in  1897  it  was  at  or  above  the  danger  line  for  75  days,  and  at 
19  feet  or  more  for  29  days,  with  a  maximym  stage  of  19.5  feet; 
while  in  1903  it  was  at  or  above  the  danger  line  for  85  days,  and  at 
or  above  19  feet  for  43  days,  with  a  maximum  stage  of  20.4  feet. 
The  conclusion  is  that  the  causes  of  these  differences  in  the  three 
floods  in  the  lower  Mississippi  river  is  to  be  found  in  the  restrain- 
ing influence  of  the  levees,  which  have  been  in  course  of  construc- 
tion for  many  years,  and  especially  during  the  last  ten  years. 
These  new  levees,  except  where  crevasses  occurred,  served  to  con- 
fine the  flood  to  the  immediate  channel  of  the  river,  and  consequent- 
ly an  abnormal  increase  in  the  height  of  the  flood  crest  was  inevita- 
ble. The  more  levees  are  built,  and  the  more  they  are  improved  and 
strengthened,  the  higher  the  stages  become." 

6,820  square  miles  of  territory  was  inundated  in  1903,  13,580 
square  miles  in  1897,  and  prior  to  1897  the  greatest  extent  was 
29,970  square  miles.  While  it  has  cost  much  to  strengthen  and 
repair  the  levees  of  late  years,  the  flood  losses  have  been  compar- 
atively insignificant  as  contrasted  with  the  amount  of  property 
saved. 

In  Gould's  History  of  River  Navigation  is  found  this  description 
of  the  first  levee  on  the  Mississippi  river:  "The  water  of  1718  was 
much  higher  and  interfered  seriously  with  the  men  laying  the  foun- 
dations of  New  Orleans,  they  being  compelled  to  stop  work  and 


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devote  themselves  to  the  construction  of  a  rude  levee  in  front  of 
the  town  and  for  some  distance  above  it,  which  sufficed  to  keep  it 
clear  of  water.  This  was  the  first  levee  in  Louisiana,  and  was 
constructed  under  the  auspices  of  Sieur  LeBlonde  de  la  Tour  chief 
of  the  engineers  of  the  colony  and  a  knight  of  St.  Louis.  This  levee 
was  merely  a  temporary  one,  but  answered  its  purpose.  It  was 
worked  on  each  successive  year,  raised  and  strengthened  from 
time  to  time,  being  finally  completed  under  Perrier  in  1727.  It 
then  presented  an  18-foot  crown  and  60-foot  base,  and  was  5,400 
feet,  or  slightly  over  a  mile,  in  length.  This  was  more  than  the 
city  front  and  was  ample  to  protect  it."  The  levees  were  gradually 
extended  both  above  and  below  the  city,  experience  from  disas- 
trous floods  like  that  of  1782  having  convinced  the  early  inhabitants 
on  the  lower  Mississippi  of  their  necessity  and  efficacy.  The  total 
length  of  levees  in  Louisiana  in  1812  was  340  miles,  built  at  an 
estimated  cost  of  $6,500,000.    A  big  sum  for  a  young  country. 

Meanwhile  few  levees  had  been  built  in  the  Territory  of  Mis- 
sissippi. Governor  Sargent  in  his  notes,  declares  that  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  Natchez  District  could  not  understand  the  flood  of 
1809,  which  destroyed  many  of  their  crops.  It  was  thought  by 
many  that  the  Great  Lakes  had  forced  an  outlet  into  the  upper 
Mississippi  and  were  pouring  down  on  them.  In  1828  the  line  of 
levees  extended  from  New  Orleans  to  Red  River  Landing,  a  dis- 
tance of  195  miles,  and  for  65  miles  below  the  city.  Above  Red 
river  they  were  in  an  unfinished  state  to  Napoleon.  From  1828 
to  1844  they  were  gradually  extended  on  the  west  bank  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Arkansas,  and  there  were  also  by  this  time  many 
miles  of  levees  on  the  Yazoo  front,  though  they  were  by  no  means 
continuous.  Above  Napoleon,  little  had  been  done  in  the  way  of 
levee  building.  Those  tracts  in  the  delta  that  were  above  the 
level  of  ordinary  flood  were  promptly  settled,  in  spite  of  great 
dangers  to  health.  Hence  the  region  produced  39,000  bales  of  cot- 
ton in  1840.  In  1850,  there  yet  being  no  levees,  the  product  was 
42,000  bales. 

Throughout  the  great  speculative  period  of  1832  to  1844  the  dis- 
mal swamps  of  the  river  valley  were  left  in  the  hands  of  the  gov- 
ernment, which  offered  them  in  vain  at  $1.25  an  acre.  'The  idea 
of  a  levee  had  not  been  considered.  The  country  was  regarded 
as  valueless.  Even  as  late  as  1848,  some  of  the  intelligent  men  in 
the  State  regarded  a  levee  upon  the  Mississippi,  looking  to  the  re- 
clamation of  the  whole  country,  as  impracticable,  the  idea  as 
,  Utopian."  (Alcorn  report.)  But  in  eight  years  all  this  was  changed, 
prospectively  at  least. 

The  Memphis  river  convention  of  1845  made  an  earnest  appeal 
to  the  United  States  to  grant  the  planters  assistance  in  the  matter 
of  levee  building,  without  which,  it  was  declared,  the  settlement 
of  the  lower  Mississippi  Valley  could  not  go  on  successfully.  The 
planters  had  expended  millions  in  building  dikes,  and  it  was  pointed 
out  that  with  more  levees  millions  of  acres  of  fertile  lands  could 


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94  MISSISSIPPI 

be  reclaimed.  It  was  proposed  that  these  flooded  lands,  still  un- 
sold, should  be  given  to  the  States  to  aid  in  levee  building  and  in 
reclaiming  them.  As  a  result  of  this  appeal,  a  survey  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi was  authorized  by  congress  to  ascertain  the  best  method 
of  reclaiming  these  alluvial  lands,  and  the  same  year  it  also  gave 
assistance  for  the  first  time  in  constructing  levees. 

Gov.  Brown  in  1846  reported  that  a  levee  had  been  surveyed 
and  recommended  by  the  State  topographical  engineer  from  the 
Tennessee  line  to  the  mouth  of  the  Yazoo,  in  1844,  and  the  cost 
estimated  at  about  $90,000.  It  was  hoped  that  congress  would 
donate  alternate  sections  of  unsold  lands  to  help  in  doing  this 
work.    It  was  beyond  the  resources  of  the  State  at  that  time. 

It  was  in  the  administration  of  Zachary  Taylor,  (1849-50),  him- 
self a  Mississippi  planter,  that  the  first  resolutions  were  adopted, 
by  the  United  States  senate,  directing  a  survey  of  the  river,  to  as- 
certain the  best  method  of  reclaiming,  the  alluvial  lands.  The 
movement  thus  begun,  resulted  after  many  years,  in  the  report 
of  Chief  Engineers  Humphreys  and  Abbott  that  the  levee  system 
was  the  only  method. 

In  1849,  Congress  donated  to  Louisiana  to  "aid  in  constructing 
the  necessary  levees  and  drains  to  reclaim  the  swamps  and  over- 
flowed lands  there,  the  whole  of  these  swamps  and  overflowed 
lands  which  may  be,  or  are  found  unfit  for  cultivation,"  and  by  the 
act  of  1850  extended  the  grant  so  as  to  give  to  the  several  States 
all  swamp  and  overflowed  lands,  within  their  limits,  remaining 
unsold,  and  directed  that  "the  proceeds  of  said  lands,  whether  from 
sale  or  direct  appropriation  in  kind,  shall  be  applied  exclusively, 
as  far  as  necessary,  to  the  reclaiming  of  said  lands  by  means  of 
levees  and  drains."  This  action  by  the  Federal  government  was 
based  on  the  broad  ground  of  an  enlarged  public  policy,  valuable 
public  as  well  as  private  interests  being  thereby  subserved,  and  im- 
portant sanitary  ends  secured.'  The  assistance  thus  given  by  the 
Federal  Government  gave  a  great  impetus  to  levee  building,  and 
the  next  ten  years  were  the  most  active  and  successful  in  reclaiming 
the  alluvial  region  below  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio.  The  largest 
recipients  of  the  bounty  of  the  General  Government  were  the 
three  river  States  of  Louisiana,  Arkansas,  and  Mississippi,  which 
have  received  18,545,270  acres  of  swamp  overflowed  lands. 

The  Mississippi  legislature  enacted  a  law  putting  levee  work 
under  the  control  of  a  commission  in  each  river  county.  In  1854 
J.  L.  Alcorn  proposed  a  system  of  general  superintendence,  and 
this  being  adopted,  he  was  appointed  president  of  the  superior 
board  of  levee  commissioners.  He  reported  in  1856  that  the  work 
had  progressed  so  that  much  land  theretofore  worthless  was  sell- 
ing at  $20  an  acre.  State  lands  and  school  lands  shared  in  the 
general  appreciation,  and  were  being  eagerly  sought  by  purchasers. 

In  January,  1856,  there  had  been  completed  9  miles  of  levee  in 
DeSoto,  36  in  Tunica,  52  in  Coahoma,  83  in  Bolivar,  50  in  Issa- 
quena; Washington  made  no  report.    The  incomplete  figures  indi- 


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MISSISSIPPI  95 

cate  an  expenditure  of  about  three  quarters  of  a  million  in  cash 
and  as  much  more  in  script. 

The  law  of  1858  provided  for  a  tax  paying  district  to  support  the 
work,  and  though  it  "did  not  embrace  the  entire  territory  which 
equity  and  good  conscience  demanded,"  yet  a  start  was  made  on 
the  true  principle.  The  tax  levied  was  fifty  cents  per  acre,  an- 
nually for  five  years,  but  this  fund  from  the  river  counties  was  for 
three  years  withheld  from  the  general  board  to  be  used  in  paying 
the  debts  of  the  local  boards.  At  the  expiration  of  the  three  years, 
bonds  to  the  amount  of  $600,000  were  authorized  to  be  sold.  Pres- 
ident Alcorn  did  not  regard  the  financial  provision  as  adequate. 
Tunica  county  alone  had  in  1858  a  debt  of  $150,000  in  levee  script, 
drawing  interest  at  10%.  By  reason  of  local  prejudice  the  en- 
forcement of  the  law  was  embarrassed  by  litigation,  and  it  became 
impossible  to  sell  the  bonds,  and  he  was  helped  out  by  a  special  tax 
of  twenty-five  cents  an  acre  in  the  river  front  counties.  At  the 
beginning  of  1860  he  had  under  contract  about  $750,000  worth  of 
work,  including  the  crevasses  of  1859,  one  of  which  occasioned  an 
expense  of  $50,000  for  repairs  in  the  levee.  But  a  recent  opinion 
of  Judge  Henry,  of  Yazoo,  that  the  law  of  1858  was  entirely  uncon- 
stitutional, made  it  doubtful  if  much  could  be  done. 

Meanwhile  the  floods  of  1858  and  1859  had  demonstrated  that 
without  levees  the  last  vestige  of  civilization  would  be  driven  from 
the  Yazoo-Mississippi  bottom.  While  the  people  of  the  delta  were 
murmuring  at  a  thirty-five  cents  tax,  they  were  paying  across  the 
river  60  to  80  cents,  and  in  Louisiana,  $2.20.  Alcorn  said  that 
because  of  the  levee  work,  since  1850,  the  Chickasaw  school  fund 
had  sold  130,000  acres  for  $6  an  acre,  and  the  State  had  been  able 
to  sell  500,000  acres  of  internal  improvement  land  and  apply  the 
proceeds  to  railroad  building. 

"At  the  outbreak  of  hostilities  310  miles  of  continuous  levees 
stretched  from  the  base  of  the  hills  near  the  Tennessee  line  to 
Brunswick  landing  in  Warren  county,  protecting  from  overflows 
the  Yazoo  basin  comprising  4,000,000  acres  of  as  fertile  land  as 
there  is  on  the  globe,  and  constituting  the  heart  of  the  cotton  zone 
of  the  United  States.  Although  sparsely  settled,  this  region  in 
1860  produced  220,000  bales  of  cotton  and  2,500,000  bushels  of 
corn.  During  the  progress  of  hostilities  the  levees  which  protected 
it  were  cut  in  many  places  by  one  or  the  other  of  the  contending 
armies.  The  floods  of  1867  completed  the  destruction."  (Garner). 
The  old  levees  were  of  an  average  height  of  8  to  10  feet  and  a 
width,  at  the  base,  of  from  50  to  75  feet ;  the  width  of  the  crown 
being  somewhat  less  than  the  height.  Of  course  some  were  of 
much  greater  size.  The  great  levee  at  Yazoo  Pass  was,  for  a  dis- 
tance of  half  a  mile,  28  feet  high  and  at  some  points  38  feet,  and  in 
places  nearly  if  not  quite  300  feet  broad  at  its  base.  In  view  of 
the  manner  in  which  most  of  the  levees  were  built  before  the  war — 
mainly  by  slave  labor — it  is  diflicult  to  ascertain  the  cost  of  these 
dikes  up  to  that  period.    It  has  been  estimated  that  the  total  cost 


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96  MISSISSIPPI 

of  all  the  levees  in  the  river  States,  from  the  beginning  of  levee 
building  to  1862  was  as  follows: 

Louisiana $25,000,000 

Mississippi    14,750,000 

Arkansas    1,200,000 

Missouri  1,640,000 

Other  States  560,000 

Total $43,150,000 

"Under  the  French  rule,  and  for  a  long  period  thereafter,  the 
levees  were  built  and  maintained  by  the  front  proprietors.  At  a 
later  date  the  police  June,  corresponding  to  the  county  commis- 
sioners in  other  States,  took  charge  of  the  levees  in  Louisiana; 
but  in  time  of  danger  the  riparian  proprietors,  occupying  alluvial 
lands  within  7  miles  of  the  river,  were  compelled  to  lend  a  helping 
hand.  When  a  crevasse  was  threatened  the  planters  and  farmers 
met  and  decided  on  the  line  of  action  to  be  pursued.  Each  gave 
the  labor  of  a  number  of  his  slaves,  each  in  accordance  with  his 
means."     (Internal  Commerce  of  the  U.  S.) 

Land  purchasers  in  the  delta  had  used  their  lands  as  security  to 
borrow  "^  money  for  improvement.  When  the  war  came  on  the 
delta  inhabitants  found  themselves,  generally,  without  further  re- 
sources and  in  debt  to  capitalists  to  the  limit  of  their  productive 
capacity.  Upon  the  cutting  of  the  levees,  the  situation  re- 
verted to  the  former  one,  planting  of  the  high  places,  and  in  ad- 
dition the  planters  were  crushed  hopelessly  under  debt  and  the 
resources  of  government  land  were  exhausted.  This  condition 
was  estimated  to  mean  an  annual  deficit  in  the  income  of  the 
people  of  $8,000,000. 

In  the  constitutional  convention  of  1865  Judge  Yerger  proposed 
a  commission  of  four  to  confer  with  -the  authorities  at  Washington 
regarding  the  rebuilding  of  the  levees.  The  negroes,  now  learning 
to  work  for  wages,  declined  to  take  the  risk  of  wages  or  shares  on 
plantations  subject  to  overflow.  The  United  States  government 
took  some  action  to  restore  the  levees  and  it  was  proposed  in  1866 
to  use  the  negro  troops  for  that  purpose. 

A  board  of  levee  commissioners  for  Bolivar,  Washington  and 
Issaquena  counties  was  created  by  act  of  November  27,  1865,  which 
expended  up  to  October  1,  1870,  $1,300,000  in  the  reconstruction 
of  the  levees.  To  provide  funds  bonds  were  issued  to  the  amount 
of  $1,288,000,  and  $1,238,000  taxes  were  collected  to  retire  the 
bonds.  The  act  limited  the  issue  of  bonds  to  $1,000,000,  but  emer- 
gency in  the  work  demanded  the  overissue,  which  was  legalized 
by  the  legislature.  Unfortunately,  the  Cammack  levee,  on  which 
had  been  expended  $73,000,  was  swept  away  in  1870. 

The  last  session  of  the  legislature  in  the  administration  of  Gov- 
ernor Humphreys  passed  an  act  (February,  1867)  to  create  the 
"general  levee  board"  of  the  State,  of  not  less  than  five  members, 


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MISSISSIPPI  •  97 

to  take  charge  of  rebuilding  the  levees.  They  were  authorized  to 
borrow  $6,000,000  of  the  United  States  government  for  that  purpose 
and  issue  bonds.  Ai¥  annual  tax  of  20  cents  per  acre  was  levied  in 
the  counties  to  be  benefited,  for  a  period  of  twenty  years.  The  legis- 
lature of  1870  petitioned  the  United  States  congress  to  again  come 
to  the  aid  of  Mississippi  by  an  appropriation  of  $2,000,000  and 
5,000,000  acres  of  land. 

The  legislature  of  1871  provided  for  a  board  of  levee  commis- 
sioners for  District  No.  1,  Tunica,  Coahoma,  Tallahatchie,  Panola 
and  De  Soto,  with  an  elaborate  code  of  procedure.  At  the  same 
time  the  act  of  1858  was  amended  so  that  one  commissioner  should 
take  the  place  of  the  board  under  that  act,  for  the  purpose  of 
liquidating  liabilities  incurred  prior  to  January,  1862. 

Bonds  were  authorized  to  the  amount  of  $1,000,000,  and  sold, 
and  a  tax  levied  for  12  years  on  the  lands  of  the  district  to  pay 
the  same.  Later,  the  board  was  abolished,  but  large  areas  of  land 
were  acquired  by  the  board  for  non-payment  of  taxes.  The  State 
also  acquired  many  acres  in  the  same  region  for  non-payment  of 
State  taxes.  The  act  of  1878  provided  that  the  bonds  of  the  dis- 
trict should  be  receivable  in  redemption  of  lands.  An  act  of  1884 
was  construed  by  the  auditor's  department  to  apply  in  the  re- 
demption both  from  State  and  Levee  taxes,  and  permitted  the  con- 
tinued use  of  these  bonds  in  payment  of  delinquent  taxes  by  pur- 
chasers ;  but  in  1891  the  supreme  court  ruled,  in  the  case  of  Wynn 
vs.  Auditor,  that  the  law  of  1884  repealed  the  law  of  1878,  and 
sales  made  for  bonds  thereafter  were  void. 

By  an  act  of  1877  the  legislature  attempted  to  compel  the  hold- 
ers of  levee  bonds  to  submit  to  a  forced  reduction  in  the  amount 
due  on  their  bonds;  but  the  supreme  court  held  this  unconstitu- 
tional, and  declared  that  the  lands  forleited  for  levee  taxes  were 
absolute  property  of  the  levee  board  for  the  benefit  of  the  bond- 
holders (Stone's  message,  1878).  Under  an  act  of  1882,  the  liqui- 
dating commissioners  reported  sufficient  funds  on  hand  to  pay  oflF 
the  entire  levee  debt,  but  by  injunction  they  were  prevented  from 
paying  out  $37,000  collected  from  the  Memphis  &  Vicksburg  rail- 
road. 

June  28,  1879,  an  act  of  Congress  provided  for  a  permanent  com- 
mission for  the  improvement  of  the  river  and  protection  of  lands. 
The  first  national  commission  was  composed  of  Benjamin  Harri- 
son, James  B.  Eads  and  B.  Morton  Harrod,  with  three  officers 
from  the  engineer  corps  of  the  army,  Gillmore,  Comstock  and  Suter, 
and  one  representative  of  the  Coast  survey.  Their  preliminary  re- 
port in  1880  favored  the  levee  system  as  a  valuable  adjunct  of  the 
jetty  system  for  the  purpose  of  improving  navigation  and  keeping 
the  river  under  some  sort  of  control.  A  committee  of  Congress 
for  the  first  time  visited  the  Mississippi  river,  studying  it  closely 
from  Vicksburg  down,  in  1880. 

An  Inter-State  Levee  convention  was  held  at  Vicksburg  in  Oc- 
tober, 1883.  In  1884  an  act  of  the  legislature  created  the  Board 
of  Levee   Commissioners  in   Yazoo-Mississippi  delta,   to  protect 

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98  MISSISSIPPI 

the  country  flooded  by  the  breaking  of  the  levees  in  the  floods 
of  1882  and  1883,  and  which  was  largely  under  water  when  the 
act  was  passed.  The  first  board  was  composed  of  C.  L.  Robinson 
and  C.  C.  Crews  for  Tunica  county,  Thomas  W.  White  for  DeSoto, 
J.  M.  Heathman  for  Sunflower,  B.  W.  Sturdivant  for  Tallahatchie, 
B.  S.  Ricks  for  Yazoo,  W.  H.  Stovall  and  J.  F.  Townsend  for 
Cpahoma,  P.  S.  Mayre  for  Leflore,  W.  A.  Turner  for  Quitman,  and 
Thomas  McGehee  for  the  M.  &  V.  railroad.  The  board  sold  bonds 
to  rkise  money,  and  began  levee  repairing  and  building  in  the  fall 
of  1884,  prosecuting  the  work  with  so  much  vigor  that  there  was 
again  an  unbroken  river  wall  in  1886.  But  it  was  seen  that  higher 
and  more  substantial  levees  were  necessary. 

The  State  makes  provision  for  the  continuance  of  its  levee  system 
by  Article  XI  in  the  Constitution  of  1890,  which  declares,  Sec. 
227,  "A  levee  system  shall  be  maintained  in  the  State  as  provided 
in  this  article." 

"Sec.  228.  The  division  heretofore  made  by  the  legislature  of 
the  alluvial  land  of  the  State  into  two  districts,  viz:  The  Yazoo 
Delta  Levee  District,  and  the  MississipiJi  Levee  District,  as  shown 
by  the  laws  creating  the  same,  and  the  amendments  thereto,  is 
hereby  recognized,  and  said  districts  shall  so  remain  until  changed 
by  law:  but  the  legislature  may  hereafter  add  to  either  of  said 
districts  any  other  alluvial  land  in  the  State. 

"Sec.  229.  There  shall  be  a  board  of  levee  commissioners  for  the 
Yazoo-Delta  Levee  District,  which  shall  consist  of  two  members 
from  each  of  the  counties  of  Coahoma  and  Tunica,  and  one  mem- 
ber from  each  of  the  remaining  counties  or  parts  of  counties,  now 
or  hereafter  embraced  within  the  limits  of  said  district,  and  the 
governor  may  appoint  a  stockholder  in  the  Louisville,  New  Or- 
leans and  Texas  Railway  Company  as  an  additional  commissioner; 
and  there  shall  also  be  a  board  of  levee  commissioners  for  the 
Mississippi  Levee  District,  which  shall  consist  of  two  members 
from  each  of  the  counties  of  Bolivar  and  Washington,  and  one 
from  each  of  the  counties  of  Issaquena  and  Sharkey.  In  the 
event  of  the  formation  of  a  new  county  or  counties  out  of  the  ter- 
ritory embraced  in  either  or  both  of  the  said  levee  districts,  such 
new  counties  shall  each  be  entitled 'to  representation  and  member- 
ship in  the  proper  board  or  boards."  • 

In  the  early  spring  of  1890  the  levees  gave  way  in  several  places, 
and  a  large  part  of  the  delta  was  inundated,  but  there  was  no 
loss  of  life  and  the  damage  was  not  serious.  The  United  States 
government  put  several  hundred  tents  and  a  large  quantity  of 
rations  at  the  disprosal  of  the  governor.  There  was  a  flood  in  1891. 
but  it  was  not  serious.  The  Palmyra  district,  including  Palmyra 
island  in  Warren  county,  was  created  in  1896.  The  Yazoo-Chick- 
asaw levee  district  was  created  in  1898.  Gk)vernor  McLaurin  esti- 
mated in  1898  that  the  delta  counties  had  expended  more  than 
$13,000,000  in  levees. 

At  the  congressional  election  in  1898  a  constitutional  amendment 
authorizing  the  levee  commissioners  to  cede  rights  of  way,  and 


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MISSISSIPPI  99 

levees,  and  maintenance,  management  and  control  thereof  to  the 
United  States,  was  voted  upon,  the  result  being  14,500  for;  5,000 
against.    Total  general  vote,  27,378. 

The  levee  organization  in  1905  is  as  follows:  Yazoo-Mississippi 
Delta  levee  district  commission:  H.  H.  Hopson  and  O.  H.  John- 
son, Coahoma  county;  Will  Polk  and  S.  A.  Withers,  Tunica;  J^ 
R.  Baird,  Sunflower;  W.  S.  Barry,  Leflore;  R.  V.  Powers,  Yazfl  * 
D.  G.  Pepper,  Holmes;  L.  Marks,  Quitman;  W.  P.  Conner^!)e 
Soto;  George  M.  Murphy,  Tallahatchie;  M.  Gillease,  Y.  &  Mr  V. 
railroad  company.  Mississippi  Levee  district  commission:  ft.-^. 
Brooks,  Bolivar;  J.  T.  Atterbury,  Washington;  W.  H.  Barnard, 
Sharkey;  J.  S.  Walker,  Washington;  W.  H.  Fitzgerald,  Wasning- 
ton.  Palmyra  levee  district  commission:  L.  Page,  A.  B.  CuWiIt 
lion,  Robert  Wade,  W.  S.  Lovell,  A.  M.  Fultz.  Tallahatchie  rlv^r 
levee  district:  C.  B.  Vance,  J.  S.  Goflf,  W.  W.  Perkins,  Aaroit 
Greenwall,  L.  H.  Shuford. 

The  Mississippi  River  Commission,  and  the  U.  S.  government 
engineers  envolved  a  theory  for  the  building  of  levees  and  the 
protection  of  the  lands  from  inundation,  which  they  have  carried 
out  in  practice  for  nearly  half  a  century.  It  was  declared  "to  be 
a  law  of  nature  that  if  a  stream  of  running  water  is  confined  to  cer- 
tain limits  or  the  channel  be  contracted,  the  velocity  of  the  cur- 
rent increases  and,  with  the  increased  velocity,  a  scour  takes  place 
which  in  ordinary  cases  deepens  the  channel."  It  was  estimated 
in  1861  that  the  cost  of  "the  proper  and  absolute  protection  of  the 
alluvial  lands  along  the  Mississippi  river  from  Cairo  to  the  Gulf" 
would  be  about  $17,000,000,  and  the  value  of  the  existing  levees 
were  about  $9,000,000 — though,  as  we  have  seen  their  probable 
cost  was  more  than  twice  that  amount.  Wm.  Dunbar  Jenkins 
thus  attacks  the  theory  on  which  the  U.  S.  engineers  have  worked. 
"An  expenditure  of  over  $50,000,000  has  since  been  made  on  levees, 
the  levees  are  still  incomplete  and  the  work  of  enlarging,  raising 
and  strengthening  them  and  of  closing  the  basins  must  go  on 
as  long  as  the  floods  overtop  the  present  levees  or  crevasses  occur. 
.  .  .  The  expected  scour  has  not  taken  place,"  he  declares,  "and 
to  get  results  the  continual  dredging  at  an  additional  expense  must 
go  on  as  long  as  the  appropriation  lasts.  .  .  .  We  have  seen 
the  'parallel  straight  jetty*  system  tried  for  fifty  years  and  it  has 
proven  a  failure.  The  course  of  the  Mississippi  river  is  not  straight, 
— it  is  made  up  of  a  series  of  alternate  curves  or  bends;  it  seems 
therefore  that  what  the  river  'wants  to  do  naturally'  is  to  assume 
a  serpentine,  or  S  shape — then  why  not  let  it  do  so  and  use  curved 
jetties  in  place  of  parallel  or  straight  jetties?  Where  a  bend  forms 
in  the  river,  the  deepest  water  or  natural  channel  is  invariably 
found  on  the  concave  side,  the  convex  side  being  either  a  sand-bar 
or  gradually  sloping  bank  with  shallow  water ;  therefore,  we  have 
to  deal  with  but  one  side  in  improving  the  channel  (the  concave 
side)  thereby  lessening  the  expense  about  one-half,  protecting  that 
side  or  'holding  the  bank'  and  giving  nature  a  chance  to  do  the 
rest.    This  is  known  as  the  'one  jetty  system'  or  Haupt  system. 


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100  MISSISSIPPI 

.  .  .  A  single  curved  jetty,  on  one  side  of  the  stream,  will  train 
the  outflow  of  the  river  to  a  single  channel  of  ample  capacity  and 
will  in  time  build  a  natural  bank  on  the  opposite  side,  automatically- 
adjusted  to  the  requirements  of-the  stream — a  reverse  curve  on  the 
opposite  bank  in  the  next  bend  will  serve  to  preserve  the  align- 
ment, the  channel  swinging  gently  from  side  to  side." 

It  has  been  shown  that  the  restraining  of  the  river  from  spread- 
ing over  the  alluvial  plain,  and  banking  it  within  narrow  limits 
tends  to  place  the  surface  of  the  floods  at  higher  and  higher  levels. 
The  continual  increase  in  the  height  of  levees  is  necessary,  not 
because  of  greater  floods,  but  because  of  the  closer  confinement  of 
the  waters.  Figures  of  the  height  of  levees  often  show  a  great 
increase  over  the  former  ones,  but  in  many  cases  the  increase  is 
due  to  the  position  on  the  flood-plain.  The  caving  away  of  the 
high  alluvial  banks  has  forced  the  building  of  levees  on  the  ground 
of  the  back  slope  of  the  flood-plain.  Where  a  levee  5  feet  high  met 
the  demands  in  1874,  now  a  17-foot  levee  is  needed;  the  top  of  the 
levee,  however,  is  not  much  higher  than  before,  while  the  bottom 
is  10  feet  lower. 

An  objection  to  levees  often  advanced  is.  that  the  prolongation 
of  the  delta  by  deposition  of  sediment,  will  cause  an  ultimate  rise 
of  bed  and  a  future  necessary  increase  in  the  height  of  levees. 
This  objection  has  been  answered  by  calculations  which  show  that 
in  100  years  the  flood  height  at  New  Orleans  will  rise  an  inch 
from  this  cause. 

The  location  of  levees  is  a  serious  problem.  In  the  eight  years 
subsequent  to  1866,  107.5  miles  out  of  800  miles  of  levee  caved  in 
in  the  State  of  Mississippi.  The  immediate  banks  are  not  in  gen- 
eral, a  safe  foundation,  as  undercutting  is  possible.  The  levees 
must  always  present  to  the  flood  a  smooth  front,  sharp  salients 
being  avoided.  Where  caving  is  excessive,  a  double  system  of  em- 
bankments is  recommended. 

Causes  of  breaks  in  levees  include:  a.  "Insufficiency  in  height. 
'The  criterion  for  height  has  been  the  highest  known  water-mark. 
The  increased  construction,  as  has  been  shown,  demands  higher 
and  higher  levees.  Crevasses  have  been  common  occurrences; 
and  as  the  efficiency  of  levees  increases  and  crevasses  become  less 
the  rule,  the  standard  height  will  be  attained. 

b.  "The  stirring  of  a  full  river  into  action  by  the  winds.  The 
March  floods,  accompanied  by  high  and  persistent  winds,  are  much 
dreaded."  Owing  to  its  elevation  above  the  Gulf,  there  is  no  tide 
in  the  Mississippi,  and  its  level  is  affected  by  winds,  more  than  by 
other  causes. 

c.  "Unsoundness  or  faulty  construction.     Here  may  be  placed 
[insecure  or  treacherous  foundations  and  injudicious  cross-sections. 

d.  "Maliciousness.  There  have  been  recorded — strange  to  say — 
breaks  that  result  from  a  desire  for  revenge,  because  of  a  private 
hostility  against  a  wealthy  planter.  Again,  landowners,  under  the 
threatening  break  and  destruction  of  their  own  property,  have  re- 
lieved the  strain  by  opening  the  levees  on  the  opposite  bank.    The 


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MISSISSIPPI  101 

swampers,  who  in  the  dry  season  cut  timber  for  the  market,  and 
who  have  depended  on  the  overflow  to  raft  their  logs,  have  claimed 
that  the  levees  were  injurious  to  their  business.  Breaks  have  been 
attributed  to  these  men. 

e.    "Burrowing  of  animals."  Crawfish,  rats,  etc. 

The  problem  of  improving  this  great  highway  is  a  national  one, 
and  whether  the  "Outlet  system,"  the  "Waste-wier,"  the  "Reser- 
voir," the  "parallel  jetty,"  or  the  "one  jetty  system,"  each  of  which 
has  been  advocated  by  eminent  engineers,  shall  afford  the  ultimate 
solution,  the  teeming  population  and  the  fertile  lands  along  the 
lower  reaches  of  the  Father  of  Waters  are  entitled  to  permanent 
protection  from  the  annual  floods  so  destructive  to  life  and  prop- 
erty. 

Lcvcrctt,  a  post-hamlet  of  Tallahatchie  county,  9  miles  south  of 
Charleston,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest  bankfng  town.  Population 
in  1900,  30. 

Lewis,  Clarke,  of  Cliftonville,  Miss.,  was  born  in  Madison  coun- 
ty, Ala.,  Nov.  8,  1840.  He  early  removed  to  Mississippi,  and  after 
attending  Summerville  institute,  taught  school,  and  then  entered 
the  Confederate  army  in  1861.  He  served  through  the  war,  and  re- 
sumed teaching  in  1865.  He  afterwards  became  a  planter,  and  was- 
elected  to  the  State  legislature  in  1877.  In  1888  he  was  elected  to* 
the  51st  congress,  and  served  till  1893. 

Lewis,  Daniel.  (See  Lewis,  Seth.)  Daniel  Lewis,  Jr.,  married  a\ 
Miss  Fairchild  at  Sheffield,  Mass.,  and  with  her  and  their  son, 
Archibald,  accompanied  the  Lyman  colony  (q.  v.).  In  1799  his 
widow  married  Richard  Carpenter,  and  after  his  death  she  married 
Gen.  George  Matthews,  of  Georgia.  She  died  in  1803,  near  Wash- 
ington, Miss.  Says  J.  F.  H.  Claiborne :  "From  Daniel  Lewis  Sr., 
and  wife,  are  descended  the  Guions,  Mellens,  Peytons,  Sages,  and 
many  other  prominent  families  in  Mississippi  and  Louisiana,  ma- 
ternally of  the  same  stock  with  Sir  William  Pepperell,  General 
Prescott,  of  Bunker  Hill,  Prescott  the  historian.  Chief  Justice  Mel- 
len,  S.  S.  Prentiss,  Judge  Parsons,  etc." 

Lewis,  Seth,  was  a  descendant  of  a  London  merchant  who  took 
refuge  from  religious  persecution  in  Connecticut.  Daniel,  father 
of  Seth,  was  a  farmer  in  Massachusetts.  Seth  was  born  October 
14,  1764.  In  1774  the  parents,  having  suffered  financial  misfor- 
tune, migrated  to  West  Florida,  taking  with  them  their  three  sons 
and  four  of  their  daughters.  The  youngest  of  these,  Sarah,  at  a 
later  date  married  Maj.  Isaac  Guion,  and  was  mother  of  one  of 
Mississippi's  governors.  The  Lewis  family  reached  New  Orleans 
by  sea  early  in  1775,  and  taking  boat  up  the  river  began  a  settle- 
ment on  the  banks  of  the  Big  Black,  in  the  wilderness.  Their 
privations  were  severe;  the  father  died  of  fever  in  June  and  the 
mother  in  September.  The  children  found  refuge  with  the  neigh- 
bors, some  miles  distant,  until  the  elder  brother,  Daniel,  gathered 
them  together.  In  1777  they  moved  to  Natchez,  where  Daniel 
went  into  business.  In  1778,  one  of  the  brothers,  Asahel,  joined 
WilHng's  command,  (q.  v.)  and  was  taken  prisoner  at  Manchac 


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102  MISSISSIPPI 

by  the  British  loyalists  and  carried  to  Pensacola.  The  Tory  sen- 
timent being  strong  at  Natchez,  Daniel,  with  the  remainder  of  the 
family,  moved  to  Plaquemine,  La.,  and  soon  afterward  he  was 
drowned  while  going  to  New  Orleans.  Seth  found  it  necessary 
to  bind  himself  out  as  an  apprentice  with  a  tanner  and  shoemaker 
on  the  coast.  While  in  this  situation  he  learned  French  from  his 
associates.  This  and  some  instruction  in  childhood,  was  all  his 
schooling.  But  he  had  access  to  books,  which  he  studied  in  leisure 
moments.  At  21  years  of  age  he  and  his  sisters  went  to  live  at  New 
Orleans,  and  he  became  clerk  to  a  trader,  who  sent  him  to  Ope- 
lousas,  where  he  gained  the  friendship  of  an  old  French  merchant, 
Duvolde,  who  took  him  as  a  partner,  admitted  him  to  his  family, 
and  gave  him  a  place  of  honor  in  the  community.  When  Duvolde 
retired  from  business,  Lewis  engaged  in  various  occupations  until, 
at  Natchez,  in  1790,  he  undertook  the  sale  of  a  flatboat  load  of 
goods  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  from  Genevieve.  At  Nashville,  he 
formed  the  acquaintance  of  Josiah  Love,  and  began  the  study  of 
law.  He  was  married  in  1793,  to  a  daughter  of  Col.  Thomas  Harde- 
man. In  1795  he  began  the  practice,  was  immediately  successful, 
and  was  elected  to  the  first  State  legislature.  While  preparing  to 
return  to  Mississippi,  for  the  sake  of  his  health,  the  office  of  chief 
justice  of  the  Territory  became  vacant,  and  he  secured  the  ap- 
pointment from  President  Adams,  May  13,  1800.  Here  he  found 
an  unpleasant  situation.  The  wealthy  and  aristocratic  men  of  the 
district,  having  adopted  theoretically  the  politics  of  Mr.  Jefferson, 
professed  to  be  incensed  at  the  appointment,  by  a  Federalist  presi- 
dent, of  "a  poor,  ignorant  shoemaker,"  as  chief  justice.  On  coming 
into  the  office  he  drew  up  a  law  regulating  the  practice  of  the 
courts,  adapted  from  the  laws  of  Tennessee,  as  required  by  the 
United  States  laws,  and  united  with  the  governor  and  Judge  Bruin 
in  passing  the  act.  His  persecutors  proposed  to  have  him  im- 
peached for  this.  He  also  excited  enmity  by  his  independence 
as  a  judge.  When  the  Jefferson  party  came  into  control  in  1802, 
the  Territorial  legislature  presented  articles  of  impeachment  and 
summoned  him  to  appear  before  that  body.  In  reply,  he  declared 
his  innocence  of  all  charges  of  misconduct,  and  said  he  was 
answerable  to  the  congress  of  the  United  States,  before  which  he 
was  ready  to  appear.  This  ended  the  legislative  proceeding.  Af- 
ter congress  had  adjourned  without  action.  Judge  Lewis  resigned 
his  office,  1803.  It  had  brought  him  the  salary  of  $800  a  year. 
In  the  course  of  his  duties  he  visited  the  Tombigbee  settlements, 
at  stated  periods,  to  hold  court,  riding  through  the  Choctaw  coun- 
try and  fording  the  rivers.  In  1803  he  presented  a  petition  to  the 
general  assembly  praying  that  he  be  reimbursed  for  a  horse  stolen 
in  the  Indian  country  as  he  was  returning  from  holding  court  in 
Washington  district.  At  the  next  election,  his  enemies  were  gen- 
erally defeated  by  the  people,  and  Col.  Anthony  Hutchins,  the 
great  leader  of  the  anti-administration  party,  in  his  last  illness 
called  him  to  take  charge  of  an  important  matter  of  litigation. 
He  was  also  employed  by  two  of  the  sons-in-law  of  Hutchins,  Col. 


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CONFEDERATE  MONUMENT  AT  LIBERTY. 


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MISSISSIPPI  103 

F.  L.  Claiborne  and  William  Brooks,  as  counsel  in  the  struggle 
over  division  of  the  property  which  followed  the  death  of  Hutchins, 
and  Lewis  arranged  with  George  Poindexter,  attorney  of  the  other 
heirs,  an  amicable  arrangement.  In  April,  1807,  he  was  appointed 
attorney-general  for  the  counties  of  the  Natchez  district,  an  office 
he  resigned  in  1808.  In  1810,  when  he  removed  to  Opelousas,  Gov 
Claiborne,  of  Louisiana,  offered  him  the  place  of  parish  judge  of 
Attakapas.  Under  the  State  government,  1812,  he  was  made  dis- 
trict judge.  During  the  time  of  the  codification  mania  in  1820-25 
he  attacked  the  penal  code  proposed  by  Edward  Livingston,  and 
caused  its  rejection.  This  triumph,  however,  caused  a  renewal 
of  the  cry  of  "shoemaker,"  that  embittered  his  life,  for  it  actually 
estranged  many  from  him.  After  27  years  as  parish  and  district 
judge,  he  died  Nov.  15,  1848.  (Autobiography,  Miss.  Archives.) 
Judge  Lewis  was  the  first  master  of  a  lodge  of  Masons  in  Missis- 
sippi. 

Lewisburg,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  east-central  part  of  De  Soto 
county,  10  miles  east  of  Hernando,  the  county  seat  and  nearest  rail- 
road and  banking  town.  It  has  three  churches  and  a  school. 
Population  in  1900,  72. 

Lexie,  a  postoffice  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Pike  county, 
situated  on  McGee's  creek,  a  tributary  of  the  Bogue  Chitto,  18 
miles  east  of  Magnolia,  the  county  seat. 

Lexington,  the  capital  of  Holmes  county,  is  an  incorporated  post- 
town  on  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  12  miles  west  of 
Durant,  and  62  miles  north  of  Jackson.  It  is  located  in  the  hills, 
and  is  surrounded  by  a  good  agricultural  district  producing  cotton, 
com,  oats,  rye,  Irish  and  sweet  potatoes,  strawberries,  sugar  cane 
and  all  garden  trucks.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice,  and  telegraph, 
express  and  banking  facilities,  a  court  house,  nine  churches  and  two 
schools.  The  Lexington  Advertiser,  a  Democratic  weekly,  was 
established  here  in  1838.  The  Bank  of  Holmes  County  was  founded 
in  1889,  and  has  a  capital  of  $40,000 ;  the  Bank  of  Lexington  was 
founded  in  1896,  capital  $40,000;  the  Bank  of  Commerce  was 
founded  in  1902,  capital  $40,000.  The  town  has  an  electric  lighting 
plant  and  three  hotels.  Among  its  present  manufacturing  enter- 
prises may  be  mentioned  an  oil  mill,  cotton  compress,  broom  fac- 
tory, and  saw  mills.  There  is  a  city  debt  of  $7,000  on  railroad 
bonds;  the  assessed  valuation  of  property  is  $1,000,000;  the  tax 
rate  is  6  mills.  Population  in  1900,  1,516,  an  increase  of  about  500 
over  the  census  for  1890.  The  present  estimated  population  is 
about  2,200. 

Liberty,  the  county  seat  of  Amite  county,  is  an  incorporated  post- 
town,  about  50  miles  southeast  of  Natchez  and  near  the  west  fork 
of  the  Amite  river.  A  short  branch  road  now  connects  it  by  rail 
with  McComb,  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.  The  town  is  located 
almost  exactly  at  the  geographical  center  of  the  county,  and  was 
selected  as  the  seat  of  justice  in  1809,  the  year  the  county  was 
formed.  It  was  incorporated  in  1828.  In  1863  the  Federal  troops 
destroyed  the  college  buildings  and  burned  much  of  the  town. 


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104  MISSISSIPPI 

After  the  war,  the  town  was  rebuilt,  and  is  now  a  prosperous  little 
place  of  about  600  people.  The  Liberty  Bank  was  established  here 
in  1902  with  a  capital  of  $25,000.  It  has  a  male  and  female  academy 
and  one  newspaper,  the  "Southern  Herald,"  a  Democratic  weekly^ 
established  in  1866.  J.  W.  Forsyth  published  the  "Liberty  Advo- 
cate" here  for  many  years  prior  to  the  founding  of  the  "Southern 
Herald."  In  1871  the  patriotic  citizens  of  Liberty  erected  a  shaft 
of  Italian  marble  in  honor  of  the  282  soldiers  it  sent  forth  a  decade 
earlier  to  fight  the  battles  of  the  Confederacy.*  This  is  the  first 
monument  erected  in  the  South  in  honor  of  the  Confederate  dead. 
There  is  a  large  saw  mill  and  manufacturing  plant  located  here,  a 
fine  cotton  ginnery^  and  brick  works.  When  the  railroad  is  ex- 
tended, the  town  will  add  to  its  already  increasing  population.  A 
substantial  hotel  has  recently  been  opened  for  business. 

Libertyhill,  a  post-hamlet  of  Lafayette  county,  16  miles  east  of 
Oxford,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  22. 

Libraries.  The  State  library  had  its  inception  in  the  joint  reso- 
lution of  the  legislature  of  1817,  authorizing  the  secretary  of  state 
to  purchase  for  the  State  such  books  as  the  secretary  of  the  Ter- 
ritory was  required  to  purchase,  "and  also  Mellish's  map  of  the 
United  States,  Darby's  map  of  the  State  of  Louisiana,  Arrow- 
smith's  map  of  the  world,  four  copies  of  Ludlow's  new  map  of  the 
State  of  Mississippi." 

The  State  library  was  established  by  act  of  Feb.  15,  1838,  but 
we  find  no  records  showing  the  name  of  the  first  librarian.  Wil- 
liam Wing  was  librarian  in  1841-42.  The  librarian  in  the  early 
period  of  the  office  was  also  the  custodian  of  the  capitol. 

The  library  was  at  first  under  the  management  of  trustees,  and 
the  library  committee  of  the  legislature  sometimes  passed  on  the 
purchase  of  books.  In  1848  the  legislature  called  for  a  report  of 
purchases  in  the  previous  four  years,  and  the  public  documents  of 
1850  contain  a  catalogue,  showing  a  considerable  collection  of  legal 
works,  court  reports,  and  books  on  medicine,  political  economy^ 
theology  and  church  history,  travel,  biography,  fiction,  poetry, 
etc.,  the  dryest  part  of  which  yet  remain  upon  the  shelves.  A  cat- 
alogue of  the  State  library  covers  fifty-five  closely  printed  pages 
of  the  House  Journal  in  1857.  At  that  time  the  rules  and  regula- 
tions of  the  library  required  it  to  be  open  every  day  except  Sunday 
during  the  legislative  and  court  sessions.  At  other  times  it  was 
to  be  kept  open  three  days  in  each  week. 

The  librarians  after  William  Wing  are  as  follows:  James  M. 
Lewis,  1842  to  1848;  John  W.  Patton,  1848  to  1852;  M.  M.  Smith, 
1852  to  1854;  James  McDonald,  1854  to  1856;  R.  C.  Kerr,  1856  to 
1858 ;  B.  W.  Saunders,  1858  to  1861 ;  F.  W.  Johns,  1861 ;  Marian 
Smith,  1866;  John  Williams,  1870;  J.  D.  Worles,  (negro,)  1870; 
I.  N.  Osbom,  1872  to  1876 ;  J.  B.  Harris,  for  Mrs.  Mary  Morancy, 
1876  to  1880;  F.  M.  Shelton,  for  Mrs.  Mary  Morancy,  1880  to  1884; 
Frank  Johnston  for  Mrs.  Mary  Morancy,  1884  to  1892 ;  T.  J.  Bu- 
chanan for  Miss  Rose  Lee  Tucker,  1892  to  1896;  Mrs.  Helen  D. 
Bell,  1896  to  1900;  Miss  Mattie  Plunkett,  1900. 


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MISSISSIPPI  105. 

In  1891  the  State  Library  was,  according  to  the  New  York 
World,  "the  second  in  value  of  its  kind  in  the  Union,  the  Massa- 
chusetts library  only  outranking  it,"  having  reference  to  its  supe- 
riority as  a  law  reference  library. 

The  State  library  now  contains  about  60,000  volumes,  including 
law  reports  and  public  documents.  In  volume  V.,  Mississippi 
Historical  Society  publications,  is  a  list  of  the  libraries  in  the 
State  with  an  estimate  of  the  number  of  volumes  from  a  publica- 
tion of  1893.  The  University  of  Mississippi  library,  the  second 
in  importance  in  the  State,  and  the  largest  of  general  resource, 
was  then  reported  at  13,000  volumes,  (now  about  20,000) ;  the  St. 
Stanislaus  College  at  Bay  St.  Louis,  50,000;  Mississippi  College 
at  Clinton,  2,200 ;  Fisk  Memorial  Library  at  Natchez,  5,000 ;  Holly 
Springs  State  Normal,  3,000.  There  are  a  considerable  number 
of  other  libraries  m  the  State  containing  from  1,000  to  2,000  vol- 
umes. One  of  the  most  successful  public  libraries  in  the  State 
is  the  Ricks  Memorial  of  Yazoo  City. 

Liddell,  a  hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Montgomery  county,  8- 
miles  east  of  Vaiden,  the  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town.  The 
pbstoffice  at  this  place  was  discontinued  in  1905  and  mail  now  goes 
to  Vaiden. 

Light,  a  postoffice  of  Rankin  county,  14  miles  east  of  Brandon,, 
the  county  seat. 

Lightsey,  a  postoffice  in  the  northwestern  part  of  Wayne  county,. 
18  miles  west  of  Waynesboro,  the  county  seat. 

Lilac,  a  postoffice  of  Montgomery  county. 

Lily,  a  postoffice  of  Attala  county,  10  miles  north  of  Kosciusko,, 
the  county  seat. 

Limerick,  a  postoffice  of  Yazoo  county. 

Lincecum,  Gideon,  was  bom  in  Hancock  county,  Georgia,  April 
1793,  the  son  of  Hezekiah  Lincecum  of  French  ancestry.  He  at- 
tended school  in  a  log  house  in  South  Carolina ;  served  in  the  war 
of  1812;  was  tax  collector  of  his  county;  studied  medicine  and 
taught  school  on  the  boundary  line  of  Georgia  and  the  Creek 
country;  moved  through  500  miles  of  wilderness  to  Tuscaloosa, 
Ala.,  with  his  wife  and  his  father's  family,  then  to  the  Tombigbee 
river  country,  building  his  cabin  near  the  present  site  of  Columbus. 

In  1819  the  government  surveyed  a  road  from  Nashville,  Tenn*. 
to  Natchez,  which  crossed  the  river  where  Columbus  now  stands. 
He  went  there  to  see  what  kind  of  a  place  it  was;  found  a  man 
with  some  goods  in  a  flatboat;  bought  the  goods,  built  a  house 
and  opened  a  store.  The  legislature  appointed  him  chief  justice, 
with  authority  to  appoint  all  the  officers,  of  the  new  settlement. 
He  was  also  appointed  to  lay  off  the  town,  which  was  located  on 
school  lands,  and  to  lease  the  lots  for  99  years.  He  appointed  four 
other  county  justices  and  a  county  clerk ;  organized  a  county  court 
and  appointed  the  county  officers.  He  was  also  school  commis- 
sioner and  sold  enough  lots  to  bring  $4,500 — enough  to  begin 
building  schools ;  removed  to  Cotton  Gin,  and  was  in  business  there 
eight  years.     He  lost  his  health;  became  destitute,  and  in  1830* 


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106  MISSISSIPPI 

began  the  practice  of  medicine  in  the  country;  was  successful; 
removed  to  Texas  and  settled  near  Houston  April  1848.  He  died 
November  28,  1873. 

Lincoln  County  was  established  quite  late  in  the  history  of  the 
State,  April  7, 1870,  and  was  named  for  President  Abraham  Lincoln. 
The  county  has  a  land  surface  of  574  square  miles.  It  is  located  in 
the  southwestern  part  of  the  State  and  the  counties  of  Lawrence, 
Franklin,  Copiah,  and  Amite,  were  divided  to  form  its  area.  The 
original  act  defined  its  boundaries  as  follows:  "On  the  east  by 
R.  line  between  ranges  9  and  10  east ;  on  the  north  by  T.  line  be- 
tween townships  8  and  9,  except  sections  3  and  4,  included  in  the 
present  corporate  limits  of  the  town  of  Wesson ;  and  on  the  west 
by  the  present  boundary  line  between  the  counties  of  Copiah  and 
Jefferson ;  on  the  south  by  the  present  boundary  line  between  the 
counties  of  Copiah  and  Franklin,  to  a  point  one  mile  east  of  the 
point  where  said  boundary  line  intersects  the  range  line  separating 
R.  5  from  R.  6 ;  thence  due  south  to  the  township  line,  which  sepa- 
rates T.  4  from  T.  5 ;  thence  east  along  said  to^vnship  line  to  the 
commencing  point."  The  act  located  the  seat  of  justice  at  Brook- 
haven.  Lincoln  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Copiah  county,  on  the 
east  by  Lawrence  county,  on  the  south  by  Pike  and  Amite  counties 
and  on  the  west  by  Franklin  and  Jefferson  counties.  It  is  in  the 
heart  of  the  long  leaf  pine  region  and  its  timber  has  always  con- 
stituted its  most  valuable  asset.  Brookhaven,  on  the  Illinois 
Central  R.  R.,  is  the  county  seat  and  largest  town  in  the  county. 
It  has  a  population  of  3,652  (1906),  is  an  important  industrial  center, 
has  several  planing  mills,  foundries,  machine  shops,  cotton  gins, 
grist  mill.,  etc.,  and  is  the  seat  of  Whitworth  Female  College, 
founded  in  1859,  and  one  of  the  best  female  colleges'^ in  the  State. 
Other  towns  of  importance  are  Bogue  Chitto  and  Norfield,  and  the 
little  towns  of  Montgomery,  Hartman,  Thayer  and  Derby,  all  on 
the  railroad.  The  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  runs  through  the  center 
of  the  county  from  north  to  south  and  two  short  branches  extend 
east  from  Brookhaven  and  Norfield,  giving  the  county  excellent  rail 
transportation.  Wesson,  a  manufacturing  center  of  importance,  is 
just  across  the  northern  border  of  the  county,  in  Copiah,  and  is  an  * 
important  market  for  agricultural  products  in  the  northern  part  of 
Lincoln.  Owing  chiefly  to  her  wealth  of  timber  resources  and  to 
the  prominence  of  the  lumbering  industry,  Lincoln  has  passed  the 
great  majority  of  her  sister  counties  in  the  total  value  of  manufac- 
tured products,  which  had  attained  the  very  respectable  total  of 
$1,767,239  in  1900.  The  principal  streams  in  the  county  are  the 
Bog^e  Chitto,  Amite,  Homochitto  and  Bayou  Pierre  rivers,  which 
with  their  tributaries  are  extensively  used  in  logging  operations. 
The  general  surface  of  the  region  is  undulating — level  on  the 
bottoms.  The  soil  is  sandy  loam  on  the  ridges  and  fertile  on  the 
numerous  bottoms.  It  produces  cotton,  corn,  sugar-cane,  rice, 
oats,  peanuts,  potatoes,  all  kinds  of  vegetables,  fruits  and  melons. 
Church  and  school  privileges  in  Lincoln  are  very  good  and  the 


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MISSISSIPPI  107; 

climate  is  mild  and  healthful.  Brookhaven  is  500  feet  above  tide- 
water at  New  Orleans. 

The  twelfth  United  States  census  for  1900,  gives  the  following 
statistics  for  the  county :  Number  of  farms  2,316,  acreage  in  farms 
221,388,  acres  improved  87,007,  value  of  the  land  exclusive  of  the 
buildings  $883,050,  value  of  the  buildings  $520,990,  value  of  the  live 
stock  $498,584,  total  value  of  products  not  fed  $961,807.  Number 
of  manufacturing  establishments  89,  capital  invested  $1,505,300, 
wages  paid  $281,103,  cost  of  materials  $962,359,  total  value  of 
products  $1,767,239.  The  population  of  the  county  in  1900  con- 
sisted of  whites  12,341,  colored  9,211,  a  total  of  21,552  and  an  in- 
crease of  3,640  over  the  year  1890,  while  a  safe  estimate  in  1906 
would  place  the  population  at  25,000.  The  total  assessed  valuation 
of  real  and  personal  property  in  the  county  in  1905  was  $4,629,015 
and  in  1906  it  was  $6,215,395,  showing  an  increase  of  $1,586,380 
during  the  year. 

Lines,  a  postoffice  of  Winston  county. 

Lingle,  a  postoffice  in  the  northern  part  of  Smith  county,  13 
miles  north  of  Raleigh,  the  county  seat. 

Lrinn,  a  postoffice  of  Sunflower  county,  situated  on  Jones  Bayou, 
15  miles  north  of  Indianola,  the  county  seat. 

Lrinton,  a  postoffice  of  Clarke  county,  9  miles  east  of  Quitman, 
the  county  seat  and  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town. 

Lrintot,  William,  was  a  native  of  Connecticut,  where  he  married 
Grace  Mansfield.  They  were  among  the  early  American  settlers 
of  Natchez  district.  One  of  his  daughters  married  James  Surget, 
bom  at  Baton  Rouge  in  1785.  Bernard  Lintot  was  one  of  the  prom- 
inent early  settlers  of  Natchez  district.  One  of  his  daughters 
married  Stephen  Minor,  and  another  married  Philip  Nolan. 

Liquor  Laws.  There  was  some  regulation  of  the  sale  of  intoxi- 
cating liquor  from  the  earliest  days  of  the  territory,  by  the  re- 
quirement of  license.  The  Poindexter  code  of  1823  limited  license 
to  the  keepers  of  inns  and  taverns,  and  the  recommendation  of 
six  respectable  freeholders  or  householders  was  required,  and  a  bond 
in  the  sum  of  $500.  The  first  temperance  society  in  the  State  was 
organized  at  Natchez  in  1828,  the  movement  being  suggested  by 
similar  organizations  in  Massachusetts.  James  Burke  travelled 
from  Natchez,  organizing  these  societies  throughout  the  inhabited 
part  of  the  State.  The  Mississippi  Christian  Herald,  Natchez, 
1837,  edited  by  Rev.  J.  N.  Maffott,  mentions  a  large  temperance 
meeting  at  Natchez.  A  temperance  convention  was  called  at 
Natchez  in  April  of  that  year,  to  be  representative  of  the  South- 
west. (Handbook  of  Prohibition,  C.  B.  Galloway.)  In  1839,  Henry 
S.  Foote,  having  been  elected  to  the  State  legislature,  secured  the 
passage  of  the  famous  "Gallon  law,"  entitled,  "An  act  for  the  sup- 
pression of  tippling  houses  and  to  discourage  and  prevent  the 
odious  vice  of  drunkenness."  It  prohibited  the  sale  in  less  quanti- 
ties than  one  gallon,  prohibited  under  penalty  of  fine  and  impris- 
onment the  retailing  of  intoxicants  to  be  drunk  on  the  spot,  the 


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108  MISSISSIPPI 

treating  of  voters  by  candidates,  and  other  excesses  that  had  long^ 
worked  to  the  great  injury  of  society.  He  was  hung  in  effigy  in 
Jackson,  but  the  law  was  in  force  for  a  year  or  two,  after  which  it 
was  repealed  (1842)  as  "a  gross  infraction  of  popular  rights/* 
Foote  commented:  "In  a  country  like  ours,  where  the  successful 
solution  of  the  problem  of  self-government  is  confessedly  depen- 
dent upon  the  intellect  and  virtue  of  the  people  themselves,  the 
strange  theory  of  human  rights  which  has  been  alluded  to  is  cer- 
tainly one  of  a  very  incomprehensible  character." 

The  literature  of  the  early  period  of  the  State  contains  abundant 
evidence  of  the  prevalence  of  intoxication.  The  references  to  a. 
few  public  men,  governors,  senators  and  the  like,  as  subject  to  in- 
toxication, must  be  understood  as  signifying  merely  a  lack  of  self- 
restraint  in  an  almost  universal  habit.  "There  was  nothing  more 
noticeable  in  the  period  1830-40,"  says  Henry  S.  Foote,  "than  the 
immense  quantities  of  intoxicating  drinks  consumed  by  those  who- 
dwelt  in  this  much-favored  section  of  the  United  States.  Drunken-^ 
ness  had,  indeed,  become  a  common  vice,  owing  to  which,  and  the 
deplorable  fact  that  nearly  all  classes  of  the  population  went  habit- 
ually armed,  the  number  of  scenes  marked  with  personal  violence 
which  occurred  it  is  really  astounding  to  contemplate,  even  in  rec- 
ollection." 

The  revised  code  of  1857  required  the  applicant  for  license  to- 
present  a  petition  signed  by  a  majority  of  the  legal  voters  in  the 
municipality  or  supervisor's  district.  The  legislature  of  1864,  as 
a  "war  measure,"  made  it  unlawful  for  any  person  to  distil  spir-^ 
itous  liquor,  or  to  establish  or  erect  a  distillery,  and  all  laws  per- 
mitting the  sale  of  spiritous  liquor  was  prohibited  during  the  con- 
tinuance of  the  war,  except  as  permitted  in  this  law.  The  State 
government  was  authorized  to  establish  two  distilleries,  for  medi- 
cinal purposes,  to  be  dispensed  by  two  agents  in  each  county 
upon  the  prescription  of  physicians  and  not  otherwise.  This  was. 
the  first  "dispensary"  law  in  Mississippi,  and  under  it  one  State, 
distillery  was  established.    This  was  sold  out  in  1866. 

Gov.  Alcorn  reported  in  1871  that  in  13  counties  from  which  he 
had  statistics,  there  were  86  dram  shops  in  1865,  and  219  in  1870, 
figures  which  showed  "that  those  particular  agencies  for  the  w^ste 
of  the  means  of  the  people  have  increased  upwards  of  150  per  cent." 
The  reconstruction  legislature  of  1870  had  adopted  a  license  law, 
but  it  had  yet  hardly  gone  into  effect.  The  revised  code  of  1871 
provided  for  counter  petitions  to  the  petition  contemplated  in  the 
code  of  1857,  and  a  counter-petition  with  a  majority  of  voters' 
names  would  carry  prohibition  for  one  year.  The  legislature  of 
1871  prohibited  the  sale  of  intoxicants  at  various  places,  including^ 
Clinton,  Starkville  and  Hernando,  and  local  prohibition  by  special 
acts  continued  to  be  the  rule  during  the  Powers  and  Ames  ad- 
ministrations. 

In  1874,  during  the  Ames  administration,  an  amendment  to  the 
law  of  1871  required  the  applicant  to  have  a  majority  of  the  female 
citizens  as  well  as  male.     "This  provision  sent  dismay  into  the 


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MISSISSIPPI  109 

Tanks  of  the  whiskey  men  and  they  stoutly  resisted  it.  A  test  case 
was  agreed  upon — ^Rohrbacker  vs.  City  of  Jackson — and  carried 
up  to  the  supreme  court  for  a  decision  upon  the  constitutionality 
of  the  law.  The  opinion  of  the  court,  delivered  by  Justice  Simrall, 
sustained  the  validity  of  the  amendment  and  reaffirmed  the  doc* 
trine  of  legislative  power  to  prohibit  the  ^le  altogether."  (Gal- 
loway.) 

The  legislature  of  1876  repealed  the  amendment  of  1874.  In 
1880  another  amendment  to  the  law  of  1871  required  the  publi- 
cation of  names  of  petitioners  for  license.  In  the  same  year  the 
notorious  "Pint  law,"  was  enacted,  which  was  repealed  in  1882. 
At  this  time  a  license  fee  of  $200  to  $1,000  was  required. 

After  1876  the  legislature  continued  to  enact  prohibition  by  spec- 
ial laws.  It  was  declared  in  8  towns  in  1878;  in  one  county,  12 
towns  and  in  the  neighborhood  of  nine  churches,  in  1880;  in  49 
towns,  etc.,  in  1882 ;  and  in  8  counties,  besides  34  towns,  10  districts 
and  about  1,8  churches  and  schools,  in  1884.  Meanwhile  there  was 
an  active  prohibition  movement  (q.  v.)  and  a  demand  for  a  general 
local  option  law.  Such  a  law  was  enacted,  and  approved  March 
12,  1886.  This  law  provides  that  upon  petition  of  one-tenth  of  the 
qualified  voters  in  any  county,  a  county  election  shall  be  held  to 
determine  the  question  of  sale  or  no  sale,  the  decision  to  be  effec- 
tive for  two  years.  If  the  majority  is  against  sale,  it  works  abso- 
lute prohibition  in  the  county.  If  the  majority  is  favorable,  the 
applicant  for  license  is  under  strict  requirements  and  regulations, 
with  heavy  penalties. 

Under  this  law  elections  have  been  held  in  nearly  all  the  coun- 
ties of  the  State.  In  most  of  them  the  contests  were  very  warm 
and  exciting,  but  the  prohibition  element  has  gradually  gained 
ground  and  now  there  are  only  five  counties,  Warren,  Adams, 
Harrison,  Madison  and  Washingfton,  in  which  saloons  are  per- 
mitted. 

By  the  laws  of  1902  the  sale  of  whiskey  is  generally  forbidden, 
except  in  cities  and  towns  of  500  inhabitants  or  more,  having 
police  protection  day  and  night. 

Lissa,  a  postoffice  in  the  northwestern  part*  of  Jackson  county, 
near  the  west  bank  of  the  Pascagoula  river,  and  about  35  miles 
northwest  of  Pascagoula,  the  county  seat. 

Literary  Fund.    See  School  System. 

Little,  a  hamlet  of  Amite  county,  situated  on  the  east  fork  of  the 
Amite  river,  8  miles  southeast  of  Liberty,  the  county  seat  and 
nearest  railroad  and  banking  town.  The  postoffice  is  now  discon- 
tinued and  mail  goes  to  Liberty.     Population  in  1900,  23. 

Little  Leader,  a  noted  Choctaw  military  chief,  or  captain,  known 
to  his  people  as  Hopeiya  Isketina,  was  tried  at  the  May  term  of 
circuit  court,  1837,  in  Kemper  county,  on  the  charge  of  murder  in 
having  killed,  a  fellow  Choctaw.  The  case  is  described  by  Reuben 
Davis,  in  his  "Recollections,"  (pp.  59-62.),  but  the  name  of  the 
captain  is  given,  mistakenly,  as  "Pushmattahaw."  Davis  says  the 
captain  "had  in  some  way  incurred  the  hatred  of  the  land  com- 


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110  MISSISSIPPI 

panics  organized  to  purchase  reservations.  [See  Choctaw  Frauds.] 
It  was  important  to  them  that  he  should  be  got  out  of  the  way, 
and  to  this  end  they  employed  a  number  of  able  attorneys  to  aid 
me  in  the  prosecution.  To  avoid  censure,  it  was  determined  that 
there  should  be  only  one  speaker."  The  indictment  was  secured, 
though  Davis  says:  "If  I  could  have  controlled  this  matter,  this 
chief  should  never  have  been  prosecuted,  nor  so  much  as  indicted. 
His  dominion  as  a  chief  was  not  at  an  end.  His  tribal  laws  were 
still  in  force  and  his  sovereign  power  unquestioned  by  the  wild 
people  who  willingly  submitted  to  his  rule.  .  .  .  Several  tribes 
had  gone  west  to  take  possession  of  their  new  homes  and  Pushmat- 
tahaw  [Little  Leader]  was  preparing  to  follow."  The  Choctaws 
had  friends  and  the  land  speculators  had  enemies,  and  some  of  the 
ablest  lawyers  in  the  State  were  engaged  to  defend  Little  Leader. 
Davis  was  assisted  in  the  argument  by  Samuel  J.  Gholson.  Joseph 
G.  Baldwin  was  permitted  to  make  his  maiden  effort  also  in  the 
prosecution,  and  his  success  was  one  of  the  interesting  features 
of  the  event.  The  jury  returned  a  verdict  of  guilty.  Upon  hearing 
the  sentence  to  be  hung,  the  captain  "rose  to  his  full  height  and 
gave  vent  to  a  wild  war-whoop,  so  full  of  rage  and  despair  that  it 
was  terrible  to  hear.  As  there  were  many  Indians  present,  there 
was  for  a  time  danger  of  attempted  rescue."  A  petition  for  his 
pardon  was  sent  to  the  governor  by  the  citizens  of  Kemper  and 
adjoining  counties,  but  as  the  day  set  for  execution  approached, 
he  was  told  by  some  one,  "in  cold-blooded  and  inhuman  malice" 
that  the  petition  had  failed.  This  almost  succeeded  in  gratifying 
the  conspirators  against  him,  for  he  broke  a  bottle  in  his  cell,  cut 
an  artery  and  nearly  bled  to  death  before  his  condition  was  dis- 
covered by  the  sheriff.  The  petition,  dated  December,  1837,  pre- 
served in  the  Mississippi  department  of  Archives  and  History,  sets 
forth  the  honorable  record  of  Little  Leader,  a  man  sixty  years  of 
age,  of  fine  natural  endowments  and  great  bravery,  who  had  been 
the  watchful  and  efficient  friend  of  the  early  settlers,  and  one  of  the 
first  to  enlist  with  Pushmataha  in  the  war  against  the  Creeks.  The 
pardon  was  granted  by  Governor  Lynch. 

Little  Springs,  a  post-village  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Franklin 
county,  about  12  miles  from  Meadville,  the  county  seat.  The  station 
of  Bogue  Chitto,  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  18  miles  due  east,  is 
the  nearest  railroad  town.     Population  in  1900,  157. 

Livingston,  an  early  settlement  of  importance  in  Madison  county, 
is  situated  about  15  miles  southwest  of  the  present  county  seat, 
Canton.  In  its  early  days  it  was  the  most  thriving  settlement  in 
the  county,  and  was  the  second  county  seat.    Some  of  the  wealthy 

planters  of  the  neighborhood  were  B.  Ricks,  John  Johnston,  

Hudnell,  John  Lowe,  N.  Hinton,  John  Robinson  and  John  Simmons. 
It  was  incorporated  in  1836 ;  other  acts  relating  to  its  charter  were 
passed  1837  and  1848.  When  the  county  seat  was  transferred  to 
Madisonville,  the  old  town  rapidly  declined,  and  it  is  now  an  insig- 
nificant settlement  and  postoffice.  In  the  50's  the  community 
surrounding  Livingston  was  remarkable  for  culture  and  wealth. 


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MISSISSIPPI  111 

Some  of  the  wealthiest  planters  in  the  South  lived  there  and  dis- 
pensed a  lavish  hospitality. 

Lizelia,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northern  part  of  Lauderdale  county, 
situated  on  Ponta  creek,  13  miles  from  Meridian.  Population  in 
1900,  67.    It  occupies  the  site  of  old  Daleville,  now  extinct. 

Loakfoma,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Winston 
county,  16  miles  northeast  from  Louisville,  the  county  seat.  Popu- 
lation in  1900,  48. 

Lobdell,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  western  part  of  Bolivar  county. 
It  is  a  station  on  the  Riverside  division  of  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi 
Valley  R.  R.,  10  miles  south  of  Rosedale,  one  of  the  county  seats 
of  justice,  and  the  nearest  banking  town.    Population  in  1900,  62. 

Lobutcha,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Attala 
county,  19  miles  east  of  Kosciusko,  the  county  seat.  Population 
in  1900,  30. 

Lockhart,  a  post-village  of  Lauderdale  county,  on  the  Mobile  & 
Ohio  R.  R.,  12  miles  northeast  of  Meridian.  It  has  a  church  and  a 
Male  and  Female  Institute.    Population  in  1900,  100. 

Locopolis,  an  important  town  in  Tallahatchie  county  (q.  v.) 
during  the  30*s  and  40's,  but  which  declined  and  was  finally  aban- 
doned before  the  War  of  1861-1866,  owing,  probably,  to  its  bad  loca- 
tion as  a  shipping  point,  and  to  the  frequent  inundations  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi. It  derived  its  importance  from  the  fact  that  it  was  situ- 
ated on  the  Tallahatchie  river,  and  was  the  first  shipping  point  in 
the  county.  It  was  about  10  miles  west  of  Qiarleston.  Dr.  F.  L. 
Riley  tells  us  in  his  sketch  of  the  old  town  that  in  1837,  "an  appro- 
priation of  $2,000  was  made  to  build  a  turnpike  from  that  place  to 
Holly  Grove.  In  1839  a  road  was  'viewed  out'  along  the  township 
line,  and  the  privilege  was  granted  to  establish  a  ferry  at  Loco- 
polis.  In  1840  the  Locopolis  turnpike  was  leased  to  a  company  of 
gentlemen,  who  in  return  for  their  services  in  extending  it  were 
'allowed  to  charge  one  dollar  for  the  passage  of  a  wagon  or  a  double 
carriage,  fifty  cents  for  a  cart,  six  and  one-fourth  cents  for  a  horse- 
back rider,  and  three  cents  each  for  footmen.' " 

Locum,  a  hamlet  of  Union  county.  The  postoffice  at  this  place 
was  discontinued  in  1906,  and  it  now  has  rural  free  delivery  from 
Dumas,  in  Tippah  county. 

Locust,  a  post-hamlet  in  Tate  county,  about  10  miles  north- 
west of  Senatobia,  its  nearest  banking  town. 

Lodi,  an  incorporated  town  in  the  eastern  part  of  Montgomery 
county,  about  12  miles  northwest  of  Winona.  Kilmichael  is  the 
nearest  banking  town,  on  the  Southern  Ry.,  6  miles  to  the  south. 
Population  in  1900,  29. 

Loftus  Expedition.  "When  Governor  Johnstone  arrived  in  West 
Florida,  there  came  with  him  a  Major  Loftus,  who  had  been  ap- 
pointed to  take  charge  of  the  Illinois  country.  Early  in  1764,  that 
officer  sailed  from  Pensacola  to  New  Orleans,  and  thence  to  Man* 
chac,  where  he  joined  his  detachment,  which  had  been  some  time 
exploring  that  bayou."    (Pickett's  Alabama,  II,  4). 


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112  MISSISSIPPI 

"Major  Loftus,  with  400  troops  of  the  Twenty-second  regiment, 
from  Mobile,  attempted  in  1764  to  ascend  the  Mississippi  to  take 
possession;  but  on  March  20th  these  were  driven  back  by  Tunica 
Indians  at  Davion's  bluff  before  they  had  well  started,  with  the 
loss  of  five  killed  and  four  wounded."  (Hamilton's  Colonial  Mo- 
T)ile.)  Aubry,  French  commandant  at  New  Orleans,  reported  at 
the  time:  "A  number  of  officers,  with  three  hundred  and  twenty 
soldiers,  twenty  women  and  seventeen  children,  left  New  Orleans 
on  the  27th  February,  under  command  of  an  officer  named  Loftus, 
in  ten  boats  and  two  pirogues.  M.  D'Abbadie  [acting  governor] 
"had  caused  the  Indians  to  be  harangued  in  favor  of  the  English, 
and  had  ordered  the  French  commanders  stationed  at  the  several 
posts  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  to  afford  aid  and  protection  to  Lof- 
tus and  his  party,  and  had  given  them  Beaurand  as  interpreter." 
On  March  15th,  Gayarre  relates,  the  party  had  reached  Point 
Coupee  without  trouble,  except  the  desertion  of  80  men.  At  that 
place,  the  refuge  of  the  old  French  Natchez  settlers,  one  of  the 
inhabitants  recognized  a  negro  on  board  as  his  slave,  a  fugitive  to 
New  Orleans,  and  invoked  the  aid  of  the  French  commandant  in 
recovering  the  slave,  which  Loftus  denied,  calling  his  men  to 
arms.  As  the  party  left  the  vicinity  of  Point  Coupee,  Beaurand 
left  them,  with  a  warning  against  the  Indians.  "The  English  had 
come  up  to  Davion's  bluflF,  when,  on  the  19th  March,  at  ten  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  some  Indians,  who  were  in  ambuscade  on  both 
sides  of  the  river,  fired  at  the  two  pirogues,  which  were  recon- 
noitering  ahead  of  the  bulk  of  the  convoy,  killed  six  men  and 
wounded  seven.  The  pirogues  fell  back  on  the  main  body  of  the 
English,  who  without  firing  a  shot  slunk  back  to  New  Orleans, 
where  they  arrived  on  the  22d.  The  Indians  who  had  attacked 
them  did  not  number  more  than  thirty  men,  and  might  easily  have 
been  repulsed.  But  Loftus  and  his  party  were  frightened  by  the 
bugbear  of  French  treachery,  and  were  under  the  impression  that 
whole  Indian  tribes  had  been  instigated  to  lie  in  wait  for  them 
on  their  way  to  Illin.ois."  Aubry  complained  afterward  that  Loftus 
accused  D'Abbadie  of  instigating  the  attack,  and  receiving  a  report 
of  the  affair  from  the  Indian  chief.  "He  returned  to  Manchac,  and 
despatched  a  captain,  with  twenty  men  to  Mobile,  through  the 
lakes,  who  arrived  safe  at  that  place.  Major  Loftus,  with  the 
residue  of  his  command,  dropped  down  to  the  Balize,  and  thence 
went  to  Pensacola."  (Pickett's  Alabama,  II,  4.).  In  Colonial 
Mobile  Mr.  Hamilton  has  collected  information  regarding  a  sec- 
ond expedition,  under  Lieut.  John  Ross,  which  was  outfitted  with 
boats  and  Indian  goods  by  Logan,  Terry  &  Co.,  the  English  trading 
house  at  New  Orleans,  the  expenditure  being  in  the  neighborhood 
of  5,000  pounds.  Ross  must  have  gone  up  river  in  the  spring  of 
1765.  "Up  among  the  Chickasaws  he  draws  for  103  pounds  in 
favor  of  the  trader,  John  Brown,  who  seems  to  have  supplied 
guides  from  there  to  the  Illinois,  and  this  was  in  addition  to  the 
compensation  of  Francis  Underwood,  who  acted  as  g^ide  and  in- 
terpreter.    Daniel  Clark,  Sr.  makes  presents  of  forty  wampums 


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MISSISSIPPI  113 

(costing  over  57  pounds)  on  the  way;  and  Logan,  Terry  &  Co. 
supply  350  pounds  of  goods  to  pay  the  rowers  of  the  bateaux  em- 
ployed by  Captain  Lagauterais  for  the  public  presents  to  the  Illi- 
nois. .  .  .  The  result  of  this  expensive  expedition  we  do  not 
know.  But  it  must  have  been  exceedingly  satisfactory  to  the 
Indians  at  least.  .  .  .  The  final  occupation  of  the  Illinois  was 
in  the  fall  of  1765,  and  effected  by  the  operations  of  Captain  Stir- 
ling with  Highlanders,  who  penetrated  the  Ohio  valley  from  Fort 
Pitt;  while  Major  Farmer,  shortly  afterward,  in  December,  took 
the  34th  regiment  up  the  Mississippi  to  join  him.  The  French 
commandant,  Saint  Ange,  then  retired  across  the  river  to  the  vil- 
lage of  St.  Louis,  and  the  English  entered  Fort  Chartres.  With 
this  the  British  occupation  of  the  Mississippi  basin  was  completed." 
(Hamilton,  and  Winsor's  Basin  of  the  Mississippi,  p.  457.) 

Logtown,  a  post-village  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Hancock 
county,  situated  near  the  east  bank  of  the  Pearl  river,  3  miles  north 
of  Pearlington,  the  nearest  banking  town,  and  18  miles  west  of  Bay 
St.  Louis,  the  county  seat.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice,  an  ex- 
press office,  lumber  mills,  two  churches  and  two  stores.  Popula- 
tion in  1900,  220;  in  1906  the  population  was  estimated  at  500. 

Longbeach,  a  post-village  of  Harrison  county,  situated  on  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  a  station  on  the  Louisville  &  Nashville  R.  R., 
3  miles  west  of  Gulfport,  the  nearest  banking  town.  It  is  sur- 
rounded by  a  fine  trucking  country.  Population  in  1900,  110; 
estimated  to  be  800  in  1906. 

Longino,  Andrew  Houston,  governor  of  Mississippi  from  1900  to 
1904,  now  a  resident  of  Jackson,  was  born  in  Lawrence  county,  on 
May  16,  1854.  His  parents  were  John  Thomas  and  Annie  Porter 
(Ramsay)  Longino,  who  lived  near  Monticella.  The  father  died 
in  1855  and  his  remains  lie  buried  beside  those  of  his  father  and 
mother  in  the  family  cemetery  in  Lawrence  county.  The  mother's 
demise  also  occurred  while  the  subject  of  this  sketch  was  still  a 
small  child.  His  early  educational  advantages  were  acquired  in  the 
country  schools  of  his  native  county,  under  such  efficient  teachers 
as  Charles  Mikell,  Miss  Mildred  Waller,  Jack  Wardlaw,  Miss  Mary 
Burkett,  W.  H.  Butler  and  W.  B.  Easterling.  When  he  had  com- 
pleted his  preparatory  work  he  matriculated  at  Mississippi  college 
at  Clinton,  and  in  1875  was  graduated  at  that  institution.  From 
1876  to  1880  he  was  clerk  of  the  circuit  and  chancery  courts  of  Law- 
rence county,  and  in  the  latter  year,  after  a  special  legal  course  in 
the  University  of  Virginia,  was  given  a  degree  as  a  graduate  of  the 
law  department  of  that  institution.  In  1881  he  was  admitted  to 
practice  in  the  courts  of  Mississippi,  the  license  being  granted  by 
Chancellor  T.  B.  Graham.  He  pleaded  his  first  case  in  the  circuit 
court  at  Columbia,  Marion  county.  In  politics  Mr.  Longino  is 
recognized  as  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  Democratic  party  in  the 
state.  From  1880  to  1884  he  represented  Pike,  Lawrence  and  Lin- 
coln counties  in  the  upper  house  of  the  state  legislature.  In  1888 
President  Grover  Cleveland  appointed  him  United  States  district 
attorney  for  the  southern  district  of  Mississippi  and  he  served  in 

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114  MISSISSIPPI 

that  capacity  for  a  peribd  of  two  years.  In  1894  he  became  chan- 
cellor and  for  five  years  was  the  incumbent  of  that  office,  resigning 
in  April,  1899.  In  November  of  that  year  he  was  elected  to  the 
office  of  chief  executive  of  the  state,  and  served  a  full  term  of  four 
years.  His  inauguration  was  in  January,  1900,  and  it  was  during 
his  incumbency  of  the  office  that  the  new  state  capitol  was  erected. 
(See  Longino's  Administration.)  Aside  from  his  official  positions 
he  has  been  a  delegate  to  almost  every  Democratic  state  convention 
since  he  attained  his  majority  and  in  1900  was  the  chairman  of  the 
Mississippi  delegation  to  the  national  convention  of  the  Democratic 
party  at  Kansas  City  which  nominated  William  Jennings  Bryan  for 
the  presidency.  His  religious  affiliations  are  with  the  Baptist 
faith,  and  he  is  a  deacon  and  Sunday  school  superintendent  of  the 
First  church  of  that  denomination  in  Jackson.  Fraternally  he  is 
identified  with  the  Masonic  order  and  the  Independent  Order  of 
Odd  Fellows.  On  April  14,  1887,  at  Jackson,  Mr.  Longino  married 
Miss  Marion  Buckley,  a  daughter  of  James  M.  and  Bethany  (Craft) 
Buckley  of  Jackson.  The  five  children  of  this  union  are  Mack 
Buckley,  Sylvester  Gwin,  James  Marion,  Annie  Ramsay,  and  Gay. 

Longino's  Administration.  Governor  Longino, was  inaugurated 
January  16,  1900.  The  State  officers  elected  in  1899,  to  serve  dur- 
ing his  administration,  were  James  T.  Harrison,  lieutenant-gover- 
nor; J.  L.  Power,  secretary  of  state;  W.  Q.  Cole,  auditor;  J.  R. 
Stowers,  treasurer;  Monroe  McClurg,  attorney-general;  H.  L. 
Whitfield,  superintendent  of  education;  E.  W.  Brown,  clerk  of 
supreme  court;  E.  H.  Nail,  land  commissioner;  Wirt  Adams,  reve- 
nue agent ;  J.  D.  Mclnnis,  A.  Q.  May  and  J.  C.  Kincannon,  railroad 
commissioners. 

In  his  inaugural  address  the  governor  urged  the  building  of  a 
new  State  House,  aid  of  the  State  Historical  Society,  establishment 
of  a  textile  school  at  the  Agricultural  and  Mechanical  college, 
laws  to  prevent  mobs  and  lynchings,  employment  of  all  convicts 
on  the  State  farms,  improvement  of  roads  under  a  road  commis- 
sioner in  each  county,  a  general  primary  election  law,  reform  of 
school  law  to  make  distribution  of  fund  depend  upon  actual  school 
attendance,  and  he  argued  against  the  proposed  policy  of  making 
a  race  distinction  in  the  matter  of  school  support.  Regarding  cor- 
poration legislation,  he  expressed  a  hope  that  "no  more  senti- 
mental or  prejudiced  opposition  to  railroads  or  other  corporate 
enterprises  will  find  favor  with  the  legislature,  so  that  capital 
hunting  investment  will  have  no  just  cause  to  pass  Mississippi  and 
go  to  other  States  offering  legitimate  inducements." 

The  year  1900  was  memorable  for  financial  legislation.  Gover- 
nor Longino  said,  in  his  message  of  1902:  "The  legislature  of  two 
years  ago  seems  to  have  marked  the  parting  of  the  ways  between 
an  old  and  a  new  sentiment  of  governmental  liberality.  Your 
honorable  body  at  that  session  was  liberal  above  all  your  predeces- 
sors, for  many  years  at  least,  in  the  appropriation  of  funds  for  the 
assistance  and  maintenance  of  the  State  institutions  and  the  proper 
objects  of  State  aid.     It  has  been  gratifying  to  note  also  that  the 


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MISSISSIPPI  115 

spirit  of  progress  and  liberality  manifested  by  you  has  been  hearti- 
ly appreciated  by  the  people,  who  have  come  to  know  of  a  cer- 
tainty that  tax  money,  when  judiciously  expended  for  the  comfort, 
education  and  general  benefit  of  the  masses,  is  not  extravagance, 
but  a  safe  and  becoming  investment  by  the  State."  (See  Finances.) 
By  the  same  legislature  the  building  of  a  new  State  house  was 
ordered,  at  a  cost  of  $1,000,000;  and  the  purchase  of  a  Delta  farm 
for  the  penitentiary,  at  a  cost  of  $80,000.  The  State  treasury  was 
aided  by  the  appropriation  of  over  half  a  million  dollars,  the  pro- 
ceeds of  lands  donated  by  congress  to  the  colleges,  and  a  portion 
of  the  million  dollars  back  taxes  collected  from  the  railroad  com- 
panies. (See  Back  Tax.)  Hence  the  building  of  the  new  capitol 
was  carried  on  without  issuing  $1,000,000  4-per  cent,  bonds,  as 
authorized.  But  in  this  transaction  the  State  acquired  a  debt  of 
$575,000,  drawing  six  per  cent,  interest  "in  perpetuity."  (See  Fi- 
nances.) 

*An  amendment  to  the  constitution,  supposed  to  have  been 
adopted  at  the  general  election  in  1899,  was  inserted  in  the  con- 
stitution, making  the  judges  of  the  supreme,  circuit  and  chancery 
courts  elective  by  the  voters  of  the  several  districts,  but  the 
supreme  court  May  30,  1900,  held  that  it  was  not  constitutionally 
adopted.  (See  Judiciary.)  At  the  congressional  election  in  1900 
two  amendments  to  the  constitution  were  adopted,  one  strictly 
devoting  the  poll  tax  to  the  school  funds  of  the  counties  (See  Com- 
mon School  Fund),  and  the  other  doing  away  with  a  State  census 
and  providing  a  new  basis  of  apportionment  for  the  legislature, 
(q.  V.)  Early  in  1901  the  disputes  among  the  oyster  fishermen 
on  the  coast  led  to  the  appointment  of  a  boundary  commission  by 
the  governor.  (See  Boundaries.)  August  15,  1901,  Governor 
Longino  made  a  sudden  demand  upon  the  State  treasurer  for  a 
count  of  the  cash  on  hand.  When  it  was  made,  the  same  day,  a 
shortage  of  $107,000  was  discovered,  which  it  was  understood  was 
loaned  to  a  foreign  bank,  contrary  to  law.  The  money  was  returned 
to  the  treasury,  but  after  a  correspondence  between  the  governor 
and  treasurer  (for  which  see  message  of  1902),  the  treasurer  was 
suspended  August  28,  and  he  resigned  September  6.  This  trans- 
action led  to  the  indictment  of  the  treasurer,  F.  T.  Raiford,  the 
cashier,  and  Phil  A.  Rush,  a  banker  of  Senatobia,  who  was  tried, 
and  after  a  mistrial,  was  acquitted.  As  Stowers*  successor,  the  gov- 
ernor appointed  G.  W.  Carlisle.  A  few  days  later,  J.  L.  Power, 
secretary  of  state,  died,  and  his  son,  J.  W.  Power,  was  appointed 
to  fill  the  vacancy.  November  5,  there  was  a  special  election  to 
fill  these  offices,  at  which  J.  W.  Power  received  12,335  votes  to 
about  11,000  for  other  candidates,  and  Mr.  Carlisle  13,107  votes  to 
9,770  for  M.  M.  Evans.  In  the  previous  year  a  special  election 
had  been  held  to  fill  various  vacancies  in  office,  at  which  the  vote 
was  even  less,  practically  amounting  to  a  disregard  of  the  franchise 
privilege.  The  total  vote  for  presidential  electors  in  1900  was  only 
59,000.  In  concluding  his  message  of  1902  Governor  Longino 
said :    "It  gives  me  pleasure  to  say  that  it  is  manifest  in  the  State 


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116  MISSISSIPPI 

that  there  exists  a  better  recognition  of  the  mutuality  of  interests 
among  all  classes,  and  that  there  is  a  more  fraternal  feeling  among 
the  people  generally  than  I  remember  to  have  ever  before  wit- 
nessed. There  exists  also  absolute  friendliness  between  labor  and 
capital  and  a  becoming  liberality  of  sentiment  by  the  masses  to- 
ward corporate  and  other  investments  of  money  in  our  midst. 
The  progressive  spirit  displayed  by  your  honorable  body  at  the 
session  in  1900  seems  to  have  inspired  the  people  with  new  hopes 
and  to  have  given  fresh  impetus  to  all  manner  of  business  enter- 
prises in  the  State.  For  the  past  two  years  the  capital  incorporated, 
on  which  the  required  charter  fees  were  paid,  amounts  to  the 
handsome  sum  of  $26,500,000.  Banking  capital  during  said  period 
has  increased  about  $6,000,000;  ten  or  a  dozen  mills  for  the  man- 
ufacture of  cotton  have  been  built;  twelve  railroad  charters  have 
been  granted ;  and,  as  shown  by  the  Railroad  Gazette  at  the  close 
of  the  year  1900,  Mississippi  stood  fourth  on  the  list  of  States  in 
the  number  of  miles  of  railroads  built  during  that  year.  ...  I 
feel  that  the  legislature  and  the  people  are  to  be  congratulated 
upon  the  material  advancement  going  on  in  the  State  and  the  au- 
spicious signs  for  even  greater  success  in  the  future." 

The  burning  of  the  Deaf  and  Duqib  asylum,  March  17,  1902,  led 
to  the  building  on  new  grounds  of  a  new  building,  completed  in 
1905.  The  legislature  of  1902  created  two  new  departments  of 
State  administration,  of  Insurance,  and  Archives  and  History, 
which  are  the  subjects  of  special  articles  in  this  work.  Upon  the 
resignation  of  Treasurer  Carlisle,  Thad  B.  Lampton  was  appointed 
November  1,  1902.  Attorney-General  McClurg  resigned  Febru- 
ary 4,  1903,  and  William  Williams,  his  assistant,  was  appointed 
by  the  governor  to  fill  the  vacancy.  He  was  succeeded  as  assist- 
ant, by  James  N.  Flowers. 

June  3,  1903,  is  memorable  as  the  date  of  the  corner-stone  lay- 
ing, or  dedication,  of  the  new  Capitol,  a  magnificent  structure  then 
completed.     (See  Capitol,  new.) 

At  the  congressional  election  in  1902  three  amendments  to  the 
constitution  were  submitted  to  popular  vote.  The  first  limited  and 
regulated  the  voting  of  aid  to  railroads  and  other  enterprises ;  the 
second  provided  that  when  amendments  are  submitted  to  popular 
vote  a  majority  of  the  voters  for  or  against  the  amendment  shall 
be  sufficient  to  adopt;  the  third  changed  the  beginning  of  ses- 
sions of  the  legislature  to  the  first  Tuesday  after  the  first  Monday 
of  January.  None  of  the  amendments  received  a  majority  of  the 
votes  cast  at  the  election. 

The  Primary  election  law  of  1902  (q.  v.)  had  its  first  trial  in 
1903.  There  was  a  primary  election  August  6,  under  the  manage- 
ment of  the  Democratic  executive  committee,  for  the  nomination 
of  a  Democratic  State  ticket,  including  United  States  senator.  It 
resulted  in  a  choice  of  candidates  for  all  offices  except  that  of 
governor,  for  which  James  K.  Vardaman  received  39,679  votes, 
F.  A.  Critz  34,813,  and  E.  F.  Noel  24,223,  and  railroad  commis- 
sioners for  the  first  and  second  districts,  for  which  latter  offices 


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MISSISSIPPI  117 

the  vote  was  very  light.  A  second  primary  election  was  held 
Augfust  27,  the  two  candidates  having  the  highest  votes  being  the 
only  candidates  permitted  in  each  case,  and  the  vote  for  governor 
was,  Vardaman  53,032 ;  Critz  46,249.  R.  L.  Bradley  was  success- 
ful over  J.  D.  Mclnnis,  and  S.  D.  McNair  over  F.  M.  Sheppard, 
for  railroad  commissioners.  Unsuccessful  candidates  who  received 
large  votes  at  the  first  primary  were  W.  G.  Kiger  for  lieutenant- 
governor,  F.  M.  Runnels  for  secretary  of  state,  J.  W.  Maxwell  for 
auditor,  J.  H.  Sharp  for  treasurer,  G.  C.  Myers  for  clerk  supreme 
court,  L.  Brame  for  attorney-general,  W.  G.  Stovall,  railroad  com- 
missioner. For  list  of  successful  candidates  see  Vardaman's  Adm. 
The  ticket  thus  nominated  was  elected  without  opposition  at  the 
regular  election  in  November,  the  vote  cast  for  governor  being 
32,000.  Under  the  Primary  Election  law  no  opposing  candidates 
could  be  put  upon  the  ticket  unless  nominated  at  regular  primaries. 

t.  W.  Brown,  clerk  of  the  supreme  court,  died  September  18, 
1903,  and  the  governor  appointed  George  C.  Myers  to  the  vacancy. 
At  the  regular  election  in  November  Mr.  Myers,  as  a  candidate, 
was  opposed  by  W.  J.  Brown,  Jr.,  J.  O.  Walton,  J.  W.  Brady,  A. 
C.  Fant  and  Henry  Yerger.  There  was  no  majority,  and  in  1904 
the  house  of  representatives  elected  Mr.  Myers. 

In  his  last  message  (1904)  Governor  Longino  said,  "Encouraged 
by  liberal  laws  and  tempted  by  the  unequalled  opportunities  for 
profitable  investment,  capital  has  poured  into  the  State  by  the 
millions  and  given  to  Mississippi  an  industrial,  manufacturing  and 
commercial  importance  and  thrift,  never  before  enjoyed  by  our 
people."  The  statistics  collected  by  Secretary  Power  showed  that 
in  the  four  years  1896-99,  365  charters  were  granted  and  recorded, 
and  in  the  period  1900-03  the  number  was  1,312.  These  enter- 
prises were  capitalized  at  $25,644,000  in  the  first  period,  at  $73,- 
500,000  in  the  second.  The  bulk  of  investment,  as  indicated  by 
the  charters,  was  in  mercantile  companies,  lumber  manufacturing, 
oil  mills,  electric  companies  and  banks.  The  valuation  of  prop- 
erty for  taxation  had  been  increavSed  to  $250,000,000,  an  addition 
of  about  $100,000,000  to  the  valuation  that  prevailed  from  1870  to 
1890,  and  later.  In  the  four  years  of  the  administration  733  miles 
of  new  railroad  had  been  built,  and  400  more  were  under  construc- 
tion. In  the  same  time  the  expenditures  of  the  State  government 
had  risen  to  an  average  of  about  $2,500,000  annually,  and  educa- 
tion both  in  the  common  schools  and  colleges  was  supported  with 
a  liberality  before  unknown. 

Long's  Expedition.  James  Long,  a  native  of  Culpepper  county, 
Virginia,  in  his  boyhood  left  home  for  Kentucky,  and  thence  trav- 
elled into  Tennessee.  He  made  a  mercantile  venture  at  the  age 
of  15,  but  having  failed,  clerked  two  years  in  his  father's  store, 
and  studied  medicine  under  Dr.  Holland,  of  Tennessee.  He  was  a 
great  favorite  with  Gen.  Andrew  Jackson,  and  at  the  age  of  20 
was  attached  to  the  medical  staff  of  Carroll's  brigade,  in  the  New 
Orleans  campaign.  After  the  victory  of  January,  1815,  he  accom- 
panied Generals  Carroll  and  Coffee  to  Natchez,  and  while  in  at- 


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118  MISSISSIPPI 

tendance  upon  an  invalid  soldier  at  the  home  of  a  Mr.  Calvitt,  met 
Jane  Wilkinson,  the  fourteen  year  old  niece  of  Gen.  James  V\  ilkin- 
son.  They  were  married  in  May.  Subsequently  he  practiced 
medicine  a  while  at  Port  Gibson,  until,  at  -the  solicitation  of  his 
wife,  he  bought  a  plantation  near  Walnut  Hills.  From  that  he 
turned  to  the  business  of  a  merchant  at  Vicksburg,  which  occupied 
him  two  years  before  1819. 

There  was  a  public  meeting  at  Natchez  in  that  year,  in  support 
of  an  expedition  against  the  Spanish  authorities  in  Texas,  which 
Gen.  Adair  was  expected  to  lead.  When  Adair  declined,  Dr.  Long 
was  invited  to  take  the  command..  He  accepted  with  enthusiasm, 
pledged  all  he  had  to  the  enterprise,  and  many  choice  spirits  joined 
with  him,  among  them  Henry  S.  Foote.  Long  and  about  75  men 
left  Natchez,  June  17,  1819,  and  pushed  on  to  Nacogdoches,  where, 
soon  after  their  arrival,  the  force  was  increased  to  300  men.  The 
purpose  of  the  movement,  on  the  part  of  the  leaders  and  the  best 
element,  was  to  get  possession  of  Texas  and  open  it  to  settlement 
from  the  United  States.  A  government  was  organized,  with  Long 
as  president,  and  a  supreme  council,  of  which  11  members  were 
chosen:  Horatio  Bigelow,  Hamlin  Cook,  W.  W.  Walker,  Stephen 
Barker,  John  Sibley,  S.  Davenport,  John  G.  Burnet,  Joshua  Child, 
and  two  Mexicans,  Procello  and  Guitaris.  Texas  was  declared  an 
independent  republic  and  laws  were  enacted.  Long  made  a  trip 
to  Galveston  to  enlist  the  aid  of  LaFitte,  the  ruler  of  that  port, 
and  armed  parties  were  sent  out  to  various  places,  and  in  their 
absence,  the  remaining  revolutionists  were  stampeded  from  Nacog- 
doches by  news  of  the  approach  of  Spanish  troops.  There  was  a 
desperate  flight  to  the  Sabine,  with  the  Spaniards  in  hot  pursuit. 
A  number  of  the  party  were  killed,  among  them  David  Cook, 
brother  of  the  general.  Long's  wife,  after  a  journey  of  great  hard- 
ship, joined  him  in  Texas  just  in  time  to  join  in  the  flight.  Long 
collected  the  remnant  at  Point  Bolivar,  went  to  New  Orleans,  re- 
turned to  Galveston  with  reinforcements,  and  took  possession  of 
Goliad,  after  which  he  was  notified  of  the  success  of  the  Mexican 
revolution  (1821)  under  Iturbide.  He  was  invited  to  the  capital, 
and  treated  with  distinction,  but  soon  fell  under  suspicion,  and 
was  assassinated.     (Footers  Texas  and  the  Texans.) 

Longstreet,  Augustus  B.,  was  born  in  Augusta,  Ga.,  Sept.  22, 
1790,  a  descendant  of  Dirk  Langestraat,  a  Dutch  settler  of  Long 
Island ;  graduated  at  Yale  college  in  1813 ;  was  admitted  to  the 
bar  in  1815;  married  Frances  Eliza  Parker,  of  North  Carolina, 
about  1815;  was  a  member  of  the  Georgia  legislature  in  1821 ;  was 
made  judge  of  the  circuit  court  in  1822;  became  a  Methodist 
preacher  in  1838 ;  was  pastor  of  the  Methodist  church  at  Augusta 
in  1839 ;  president  of  Emory  College,  1839-48.  "Called  to  preside 
over  the  Centenary  College,  of  Louisiana,  he  accepted  the  call, 
but  remained  there  only  five  months,  when,  finding  the  field 
wholly  unsuited  to  his  views,  he  resigned  and  returned  to  Geor- 
gia. Hardly  had  he  arrived  in  the  state  when  he  received  the  in- 
formation, from  official  and  private  sources,  nearly  all  at  the  same 


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MISSISSIPPI  119 

time,  that  he  had  been  elected  unanimously  to  the  presidency  of 
the  University  of  Mississippi,  not  having  been  a  candidate  for  the 
office.  Here  his  career  was  eminently  successful.  Entering  upon 
the  duties  of  his  office  in  September,  1849,  he  gave  his  best  serv- 
ices to  the  institution,  and  in  the  unparalleled  prosperity  of  the 
University  during  the  seven  years  of  his  incumbency,  he  reaped 
the  truest,  richest  and  most  gratifying  reward  for  all  his  unweary- 
ing and  faithful  toils.  ...  He  tendered  his  resignation  of  the 
office  of  president  in  July,  1856,  and  retired  to  a  residence  distant 
some  twelve  miles  from  Oxford,  where  he  proposed  to  spend  the 
evening  of  his  days  in  tranquil  retirement.  In  this,  however,  he 
was  destined  to  be  disappointed,  as  on  the  25th  of  November,  1857, 
he  was  elected  president  of  the  South  Carolina  College,  and  after 
two  years  spent  there,  was  compelled  to  abandon  the  office  and 
retire  to  private  life  by  the  revulsion  of  public  affairs,  consequent 
upon  the  breaking  out  of  the  Civil  War.  After  the  close  of  the 
strife  he  returned  to  Oxford,  and  ended  his  days  in  the  midst  of 
his  family  and  his  many  friends  on  the  9th  of  July,  1870."  (Me- 
morial by  John  N.  Waddel.)  His  famous  book  of  character 
sketches,  "Georgia  Scenes,"  was  begun  when  he  was  a  judge.  In 
that  period  also,  he  was  an  ardent  politician  of  the  State  Rights 
school.    (See  Lamar,  L.  Q.  C.) 

Longtown,  a  post-village  in  the  northwestern  part  of  Panola 
county,  12  miles  west  of  Como  depot,  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R., 
and  16  miles  northwest  of  Sardis,  the  county  seat  of  justice.  It  has 
two  churches  and  a  high  school.    Population  in  1900,  175. 

Longview,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  central  part  of  Oktibbeha  county, 
on  the  Aberdeen  division  of  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  7  miles  by 
rail  southwest  of  Starkville,  the  county  seat  and  the  nearest  bank- 
ing town.    Population  in  1900,  40. 

Longwood,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Washington 
county,  1  mile  from  the  Mississippi  river,  and  a  station  on  the 
Riverside  division  of  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  18 
miles  south  of  Greenville.  Population  in  1900,  30;  estimated  in 
1906  to  be  100. 

Lonoke,  a  postoffice  of  Benton  county,  10  miles  southwest  of 
Ashland,  the  county  seat. 

Looxahoma,  a  post-hamlet  of  Tate  county,  8  miles  east  of  Sena- 
tobia,  the  county  seat,  and  the  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town. 
It  has  two  churches,  several  stores,  a  gin  and  a  good  school.  Popu- 
lation in  1900,  87. 

Lopez.  See  Quitman  and  Quitman's  Adm.  In  1848  Lopez  was 
executed  by  garrote  in  Cuba,  and  with  him  Clement  Stanford,  a 
daring  young  enthusiast  from  Natchez. 

Lorena,  a  post-hamlet  of  Smith  county,  12  miles  south  of  Forest, 
on  the  A.  &  V.  R.  R.,  the  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town,  and 
12  miles  north  of  Raleigh,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  100. 

Lorenzen,  a  post-hamlet  of  Sharkey  county,  situated  on  Indian 
Bayou,  3  miles  west  of  Rolling  Fork,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest 


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120  MISSISSIPPI 

railroad  and  banking  town.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice.  Popu- 
lation in  1906,  76. 

Loring,  a  postoffice  of  Madison  county,  about  14  miles  northeast 
of  Canton,  the  county  seat. 

Loring,  Israel,  was  born  in  Sunbury,  Mass. ;  moved  to  Marietta, 
Ohio,  in  1787;  was  a  commissary  in  Gen.  Wayne's  army;  moved 
to  Claiborne  county,  Miss.,  1803,  and  built  the  first  frame  house 
in  Port  Gibson ;  was  third  grand-master  of  Masons  in  the  State ; 
died  at  Port  Hudson,  June  18,  1843. 

Lorman,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northern  part  of  Jefferson  county, 
and  a  station  on  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  9  miles 
(direct)  north  of  Fayette,  the  county  seat,  and  the  nearest  banking 
town.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice.    Population  in  1900,  82. 

Lorraine,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Harrison  county, 
situated  on  the  Biloxi  river,  8  miles  north  of  Gulfport,  the  county 
seat.    Population  in  1900,  60. 

Lotteries  were  frequently  authorized  in  the  early  days  of  Mis- 
sissippi. The  latest  instance  was  legislation  in  the  administration 
of  Governor  Humphreys,  in  aid  of  the  Southern  asylum,  the  Nat- 
chez orphan  asylum,  the  Lunatic  asylum  and  Orphans  home. 
'*The  Mississippi  Agricultural,  Educational  and  Manufacturing 
Aid  Society"  was  incorporated  for  the  purpose  "of  encouraging 
manufactures  and  agriculture  and  to  aid  in  raising  a  fund  to  edu- 
cate destitute  orphans,"  etc.,  and  authorized  to  run  a  lottery  at 
Vicksburg  and  other  points,  after  paying  $5,000  for  the  benefit  of 
the  State  university. 

The  constitution  of  1869  prohibited  the  legislature  from  author- 
izing any  lottery,  or  allowing  the  sale  of  lottery  tickets,  "nor  shall 
any  lottery  heretofore  authorized  be  permitted  to  be  drawn  or 
tickets  therein  to  be  sold."  The  prohibition  is  continued  by  the 
constitution  of  1890. 

Lottville,  a  post-hamlet  of  Madison  county,  12  miles  east  of 
Canton,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  22. 

Lotus,  a  postoffice  in  the  extreme  southeastern  part  of  Sunflower 
county,  situated  on  Great  Sky  Lake,  about  15  miles  southeast  of 
Indianola,  the  county  seat. 

Louin,  an  incorporated  post-hamlet  in  the  western  part  of 
Jasper  county,  16  miles  from  Paulding,  the  county  seat,  and  4  miles 
southwest  of  the  station  of  Montrose,  on  the  Mobile,  Jackson  & 
Kansas  City  R.  R.  It  has  good  general  stores,  a  saw  mill,  a  shingle 
mill,  a  church,  a  good  school  and  a  bank.  The  Bank  of  Louin  was 
established  in  1906.  Population  in  1900,  25;  the  population  in 
1906  was  300. 

Louis  Phillippc.  This  Bourbon  prince  and  his  party  were  at 
Natchez  in  the  early  part  of  the  year  1798,  when  the  town  was 
under  two  flags,  and  viewed  with  melancholy  interest  the  remains 
of  old  Fort  Rosalie.  The  duke  of  Orleans  was  attended  by  his 
brothers,  and  the  Marquis  de  Mountjoy,  and  was  on  his  way  to 
New  Orleans,  to  take  ship  and  sail  under  armed  convoy  for  Spain, 
where  they  would  join  their  mother  who  had  taken  refuge  in  that 


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MISSISSIPPI  121 

country.  Concerning  them,  Gen.  Wilkinson  wrote  to  Capt.  Guion, 
January  10,  commanding  the  United  States  battalion,  **When  you 
receive  this  letter  you  will  probably  see  the  future  king  of  France. 
The  duke  of  Orleans  is  popular  and  a  soldier.  Fulfill  your  orders 
respecting  foreigners,  and  treat  these  wjanderers,  who  are  friendly, 
with  hospitality  and  respect."     (See  Constitution,  1832.) 

Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition.  An  act  of  1902  appropriated 
$50,000  for  "a  suitable  display  of  Mississippi's  progress  and  his- 
tory, and  the  industrial,  agricultural,  mineral,  educational  and 
other  resources  of  the  State,"  at  the  centennial  exposition  to  be 
held  at  St.  Louis  in  1903.  The  Exposition  bureau  was  created, 
composed  of  the  governor,  and  four  members  appointed  by  the 
governor — Dr.  O.  B.  Quin  of  McComb  City,  I.  C.  Enochs  of  Jack- 
son, V.  P.  Still  of  Senatobia,  and  Frank  Burkitt  of  Okolona.  The 
board  appointed  as  State  commissioner  R.  H.  Henry,  of  Jackson. 
The  Commission  provided  a  creditable  exhibit,  which  properly 
presented  the  resources  of  the  State.  A  State  building  was  also 
erected,  which  was  a  replica  of  Beauvoir,  the  home  of  Jefferson 
Davis. 

Louisiana  Relations,  1763-79.  The  region  of  the  State  of  Mis- 
sissippi was  separated  from  the  Louisiana  colonial  government  by 
the  treaty  of  Paris,  1763,  which  yielded  the  dominion  to  Great 
Britain  of  all  the  territory  east  of  the  river,  except  New  Orleans 
and  the  island  on  which  it  stands.  Kerlerec  was  governor  at  that 
time.  He  had  been  notified  as  early  as  the  fall  of  1761  that  France 
had  applied  to  Spain  for  assistance  in  protecting  Louisiana  from 
the  English,  and  he  sent  out  couriers  to  the  Indians  to  advise  them 
of  the  prospect  of  Spanish  alliance  and  trade.  Spain  seemed  in- 
disposed to  g^ve  assistance  without  compensation,  and  finally, 
November  3,  1762,  the  king  of  France  "ceded  to  his  cousin  of 
Spain,  and  to  his  successors,  for  ever,  in  full  ownership  and  with- 
out any  exception  or  reservation  whatever,  from  the  pure  impulse 
of  his  generous  heart,  and  from  the  sense  of  the  affection  and 
friendship  existing  between  these  two  royal  persons  all  the  coun- 
try known  under  the  name  of  Louisiana."  The  King  of  Spain  ac- 
cepted this  donation,  "in  order  the  better  to  cement  the  union 
which  existed  between  the  two  nations  as  between  the  two  kings." 
This  conveyed  to  Spain  Mobile  and  all  the  territory  of  the  present 
state  of  Mississippi.  But  the  act  was  kept  secret,  and  the  king 
of  France  continued  to  act  as  sovereign  of  Louisiana,  until  after 
the  open  treaty  of  Paris,  between  all  the  powers  at  war,  when  the 
cession  of  the  eastward  region  was  made,  as  above  stated,  by 
France,  without  any  reference  to  the  previous  secret  family  treaty. 
This  was  in  February.  In  March,  the  king  of  France  announced 
that  he  had  determined  to  disband  his  troops  in  Louisiana  and 
maintain  only  a  factory  (trading  establishment)  with  a  guard  of 
four  companies  of  infantry.  D'Abbadie  was  sent  to  New  Orleans 
as  director  of  the  factory  and  military  commander.  Kerlerec  re- 
turned to  Paris  and  was  thrown  in  the  Bastile  on  charges  of 
usurpation  and  extravagance.   D'Abbadie  informed  his  government 


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122  ,  MISSISSIPPI 

that  the  colony  was  in  "a  state  of  complete  destitution,"  "a  chaos 
of  iniquities."  This  was  the  result,  after  an  expenditure  estimated 
at  forty  or  fifty  millions  of  livres. 

April  21,  1764,  the  king,  by  letter,  informed  D'Abbadie  of  the 
secret  cession  to  Spain,  and  ordered  him,  when  Spanish  authority 
presented  itself,  to  withdraw  all  the  French  officers,  soldiers  and 
officials,  and  send  to  France  or  to  French  colonies  those  who  might 
not  be  disposed  to  remain  under  Spanish  dominion.  D'Abbadie 
published  this  letter  in  October.  February  4,  1765,  D'Abbadie 
died  and  Aubry  became  his  successor.  In  that  year  the  colony  was 
gfreatly  strengthened  by  the  advent  of  the  refugees  from  the  Illi- 
nois and  Mobile  regions  and  the  Acadians. 

Despite  the  withdrawal  of  their  flag,  the  French  government  had 
great  influence  over  the  Indians  of  the  interior.  The  English 
blamed  them  with  inciting  the  red  men  to  hostilities,  and  the  French 
retorted  with  denials,  alleging  that  the  British  treated  the  In- 
dians with  such  insolence  and  brutality  that  hostilities  were  in- 
evitable. 

Subsequent  to  the  peace  of  1763,  the  Indians  of  the  Ohio  valley 
made  a  fierce  outbreak  against  the  English,  led  by  the  famous  Pon- 
tiac,  but  "even  Pontiac  made  a  peace  after  his  ambassadors  to 
New  Orleans  learned  from  the  dying  D'Addabie  that  their  French 
father  had  indeed  abandoned  his  red  children  in  America."  (Ham- 
ilton.) 

At  New  Orleans  "the  French  saw  with  distrust  the  frequent 
transportation  of  English  troops,  through  the  very  heart  of  the 
poor  remnant  of  their  once  so  extensive  and  magnificent  posses- 
sions. They  heard  with  uneasiness  the  morning  and  evening  guns 
which  the  English  fired  as  they  went  up  and  down  the  river.  This 
gun  firing  greatly  alarmed  and  excited  the  Indians,  who  took  it 
as  a  sign  of  hostility  or  triumph.  They  could  hardly  be  persuaded 
that  it  was  no  more  than  a  military  usage,  and  they  had  imbibed 
the  impression  that  the  French  admitted  their  inferiority,  or 
showed  cowardice,  in  not  resenting  this  provocation  offered  to 
them.  ...  A  frigate  was  sent  to  the  mouth  of  the  Manchac, 
where  she  was  to  remain  until  a  fort  should  be  constructed.  It 
was  also  known  that  another  frigate  was  to  ascend  to  Natchez, 
where  the  erection  of  a  fort  was  contemplated." — (Gayarre.) 

Aubry  had  no  battery  on  the  river,  but  he  ranged  20  pieces  of 
artillery  before  the  barracks,  with  which  to  return  salutes.  He 
permitted  Du  Pare  to  help  the  British  clean  out  the  Manchac  chan- 
nel, but  he  refused  Farmer  and  his  Illinois  expedition,  in  the  spring 
of  1765,  the  use  of  the  ordinary  passage  from  Mobile  to  New  Or- 
leans, through  the  lakes  and  Bayou  St.  John.  "He  has  the  river; 
let  him  use  it." 

The  French  of  Louisiana  sent  Jean  Milhet  to  Paris,  and  he,  ac- 
companied by  the  great  Bienville,  then  in  his  86th  year,  pleaded 
before  the  duke  of  Choiseul  that  France  should  retain  Louisiana. 
It  was  in  vain.  July,  1765,  brought  word  that  the  eminent  An- 
tonio de    Ulloa,  appointed    governor    by    the    king   of  Spain,  had 


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MISSISSIPPI  123 

reached  Havana,  and  would  soon  be  at  New  Orleans.  He  arrived 
March  5,  1766,  with  two  companies  of  infantry,  under  Captain 
Pedro  Piernas,  and  a  board  of  officials,  Loyola,  Gayarre,  and 
Navarro. 

The  French  were  still  indisposed  to  submit.  Ulloa  did  not  in- 
sist, gave  some  time  to  establishing  posts  on  the  frontier,  allowed 
Aubry  to  continue  to  be  the  practical  head  of  affairs,  and  secluded 
himself  for  months  at  Balize,  greatly  to  the  bewilderment  of  the 
French,  until  a  ship  brought  there  as  the  governor's  bride  the 
young  and  beautiful  Marchioness  of  Abrado,  one  of  the  richest 
heiresses  of  Peru. 

In  1768  Ulloa  established  military  posts  opposite  those  of  the 
British,  at  Manchac  and  Natchez,  at  Balize,  and  at  "Missouri." 
Piernas  commanded  at  the  Natchez  post.  Aubry  complained  of 
this  to  the  French  government.  In  October  the  French  dissatis- 
faction broke  out  in  revolt.  New  Orleans  was  seized,  and  Ulloa 
was  forced  to  take  refuge  in  the  Spanish  frigate.  The  provincial 
council  dismissed  Ulloa  from  the  colony.  In  preparing  for  this 
revolt  envoys  were  sent  to  Pensacola  to  engage  British  assistance, 
which  was  refused. 

The  Spanish  government,  when  informed  of  the  revolution,  dis- 
cussed the  question  whether  it  was  advisable  to  attempt  to  hold 
the  province.  Possibly  the  counsel  of  Aranda  was  the  shrewdest 
given  to  the  king,  namely,  that  it  was  necessary  for  the  protection 
of  Mexico,  because  there  were  no  established  limits  between  Louis- 
iana and  Mexico,  and  if  any  power  other  than  France  should  sub- 
sequently obtain  control  beyond  the  Mississippi,  serious  conse- 
quences would  result.  He  would  not  attempt  more  than  a  military 
establishment,  to  maintain  the  river  frontier,  and  depend  upon 
setting  the  Indians  against  the  English  to  keep  the  latter  at  bay. 

Consequently  Lieu  tenant-General  O'Reilly,  an  Irishman  and 
one  of  the  great  soldiers  of  his  time,  was  ordered  to  reduce  the 
French  to  subjection.  He  arrived  from  Havana  with  a  fleet  and 
army  July  24,  1769.  The  French  peaceably  submitted,  but  the 
leaders  were  promptly  arrested.  Six  were  sent  to  Moro  castle,  and 
five  were  sentenced  to  hanging  and  permitted  to  be  shot. 

When  O'Reilly  reported  the  condition  of  the  province  he  wrote : 
"I  found  the  British  in  complete  ppssession  of  the  commerce  of 
the  colony.  They  had  in  the  town  their  merchants  and  traders 
with  open  stores  and  shops,  and  I  can  safely  assert  that  they  pock- 
eted nine-tenths  of  the  money  spent  here.  The  commerce  of 
France  used  to  receive  the  productions  of  the  colony  in  payment 
of  the  articles  imported  into  it  from  the  mother  country;  but  the 
English,  selling  their  goods  much  cheaper,  had  the  gathering  of 
all  the  money.  I  drove  off  all  the  English  traders  and  the  other 
individuals  of  that  nation  whom  I  found  in  this  town,  and  I  shall 
admit  here  none  of  their  vessels."  (Report,  Oct.  17,  1769.)  But 
it  was  not  long  after  this  that  Oliver  Pollock,  bringing  a  cargo  of 
flour  from  Baltmore,  by  an  act  of  generosity  won  permission  of 
free  access  as  long  as  he  lived. 


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124  MISSISSIPPI 

Later,  it  appears  that  the  Spanish  authorities  made  no  serious 
attempt  to  prevent  the  French  inhabitants  from  trading  with  the 
British.  The  latter  had  perfect  freedom  of  access  to  the  river, 
which  their  vessels  were  constantly  ploughing  upon  and  down. 
"Under  the  pretence  of  going  to  their  possessions  of  Manchac, 
Baton  Rouge  and  Natchez,  the  English  contrived  clandestinely  to 
supply  the  inhabitants  of  New  Orleans  and  the  planters  above  and 
below  that  town  with  goods  and  slaves.  They  took  in  exchange 
whatever  their  customers  had  to  spare,  and  extended  to  them  a 
most  liberal  credit.  Besides,  they  had  very  large  warehouses  at 
Manchac,  Baton  Rouge  and  Natchez,  and  a  number  of  vessels 
constantly  moored  a  short  distance  above  New  Orleans,  opposite 
to  the  spot  now  known  as  the  city  of  Lafayette.  To  these  places 
the  inhabitants  of  Louisiana  used  to  resort."  (Martin  and  Gay- 
arre.)  There  were  also  two  vessels  fitted  up  as  stores,  with  shelves 
and  counters,  which  went  up  and  down  the  river,  bringing  the  con- 
veniences of  the  city  to  every  planter's  door.  In  this  way,  the 
English  made  the  province  of  Louisiana  worthless  to  Spain,  ex- 
cept as  a  military  frontier. 

In  1776,  Don  Bernardo  de  Galvez,  son  of  the  viceroy  of  Mexico, 
was  made  colonel  of  the  regiment  of  Louisiana,  a  favored  organiza- 
tion of  French  Creoles.  It  was  the  year  of  the  American  declara- 
tion of  independence,  and  a  number  of  merchants  trading  at  New 
Orleans  from  Boston,  New  York  and  Philadelphia,  among  them 
Oliver  Pollock,  procured  a  good  supply  of  arms  and  ammunition 
for  the  inhabitants  of  western  Pennsylvania,  which  they  delivered 
to  Col.  Gibson,  who  had  come  down  the  river  from  Pittsburg. 
(Gayarre.)  This  served  as  a  check  to  the  West  Florida  campaign 
projected  by  John  Stuart.  The  Spanish  authorities  connived  at 
this  breach  of  neutrality,  having  confidential  relations  with  the 
commercial  agents. 

Early  in  1776  Gov.  Unzage,  at  New  Orleans,  was  asked  to  report 
his  war  resources.  He  said  he  would  be  practically  helpless  if 
attacked,  and  must  retreat  to  the  Mexican  frontier.  But  he  sent 
Bartholomew  Beauregard  to  Philadelphia  to  get  at  the  truth  of 
the  situation.  Upon  the  transfer  of  Unzaga  to  Carracas,  Col.  Gal- 
vez became  provisional  governor  Feb.  1,  1777,  and  within  a  few 
days  two  French  commissioners  arrived,  to  carry  out  an  agreement 
of  the  home  governments  that  Louisiana  should  be  permitted  to 
trade  with  the  French  West  Indies.  Consequently,  under  Galvez, 
the  English  trade  supremacy  was  dethroned,  and  the  French  be- 
came the  commercial  masters.  In  April,  1777,  the  commissioners 
reported  that  Galvez  had  seized  11  English  vessels,  richly  laden, 
which  were  trading  with  the  planters  on  the  river.  To  help  the 
situation,  the  king  of  Spain  oflFered  to  take  all  the  tobacco  the  col- 
onists could  raise,  at  a  liberal  price,  and  all  restrictions  were  re- 
moved from  the  importation  of  negroes. 

Galvez  received  several  orders  to  give  the  American  colonies 
secret  assistance,  and  this  was  communicated  to  the  revolutionary 
government.     Boats  came  down  in  1777  from   Pittsburg  to  New 


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MISSISSIPPI  125 

Orleans  for  loads  of  army  munitions,  Pollock  acting  as  agent  in 
charge  of  this  business. 

Col.  George  Morgan,  in  command  at  Fort  Pitt  (Pittsburg,  Pa.) 
writing  to  Galvez  in  April,  1777,  proposed  that  if  his  excellency 
approved,  an  expedition  might  be  organized  of  a  thousand  men, 
to  capture  Mobile  and  Pensacola.  This  was  not,  however,  agree- 
able to  Galvez,  and  he  set  about  the  building  of  gunboats  to  close 
the  river  against  such  a  torrent  of  revolution.  He  might  have 
feared  the  effect  upon  the  French,  who  were  not  indisposed  to  fol- 
low the  American  example,  as  their  friends  at  home  did,  a  few 
years  later.  Galvez  also  reported  that  he  had  secured  the  pledges 
of  the  Choctaws,  Chickasaws  and  Creeks  to  remain  neutral  be- 
tween the  English  and  Americans  and  prevent  the  Americans 
from  crossing  their  territory  to  invade  the  Florida  posts.  What- 
ever he  did  served  to  defeat  the  plan  of  Stuart.  Some  negotiations 
relative  to  Natchez  district  are  to  be  suspected  from  the  Madrid 
advice  to  Galvez  that  if  the  Americans  seized  any  British  settle- 
ments on  the  Mississippi,  and  were  disposed  to  deliver  them  up 
to  Spain,  in  trust,  Galvez  should  receive  and  hold  them,  with  due 
regard  to  British  interests. 

It  was  in  this  condition  of  affairs  that  James  Willing  made  his 
second  expedition,  and  by  the  depredations  of  his  troops  caused 
acts  of  hostility,  and  drove  a  good  many  planters  across  the  Mis- 
sissippi to  seek  Spanish  protection,  thereby  giving  some  encour- 
agement to  the  plan  of  using  the  troubles  of  the  revolution  as  a 
pretext  to  regain  eastern  Louisiana  and  all  Florida.  "The  Span- 
iards here  see  with  regret  these  conquests,"  the  French  commis- 
sioners wrote,  "because  it  cuts  off  their  hope  of  executing  them  on 
their  account,  and  of  thereby  securing  for  themselves  the  exclu- 
sive possession  of  the  gulf  of  Mexico.''  They  added,  revealing  the 
hope  of  France,  "It  is  the  interest  of  Spain  that  France  should 
recover  the  possession  of  Louisiana."  The  idea  was  to  restore  the 
old  condition,  before  1763.  Spain  would  willingly  relinquish  Louis- 
iana to  France.  Her  desire  was  Pensacola  and  East  Florida,  assur- 
ing command  of  the  gulf,  to  protect  Cuba  and  Mexico. 

In  July,  1778,  the  British  flag  had  not  been  seen  on  the  Missis- 
sippi river  for  three  months,  except  at  the  masthead  of  the  frigate 
on  guard  at  Manchac. 

Early  in  this  year  France  had  recognized  American  independ- 
ence, and  thereupon  sought  the  aid  of  Spain.  Great  Britain  used 
her  influence  to  prevent  such  a  combination,  and  Madrid  became 
the  seat  of  a  great  diplomatic  contest.  There  was  actually  no 
doubt  of  the  disposition  of  Spain,  but  the  eminent  minister  of 
Charles  II,  Florida  Blanca,  kept  the  situation  open  as  long  as  pos- 
sible. It  followed  that  in  1778-79  the  position  of  Spain  was  of 
commanding  importance.  France  was  in  a  perilous  situation, 
overwhelmed  by  debt  and  suffering  from  the  destruction  of  her 
commerce.  "Spain  offered  herself  as  mediator  between  the  allies 
and  their  common  enemy,  and  through  her  the  terms  of  pacifica- 
tion were  discussed.     In  the  negotiations,  protracted  and  on  both 


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126  MISSISSIPPI 

sides  largely  insincere,  between  Spain  and  Great  Britain  relative 
to  the  proposed  pacification,  the  winter  of  1778-79  was  consumed." 
—(Wharton.) 

The  propositions  of  Florida  Blanca  were  rejected  by  England, 
probably  as  was  expected  When  they  were  framed.  Meanwhile 
the  great  Spaniard  had  negotiated  all  round  the  world  in  support 
of  a  war  on  England.  Holland  and  Denmark  were  conciliated  by 
trade  concessions  and  their  anger  at  English  aggression  fomented, 
Catherine  of  Russia  was  encouraged  in  the  policy  of  armed  neu- 
trality, a  peace  was  promoted  between  Austria  and  Prussia  in 
order  to  relieve  France,  an  understanding  was  reached  in  India 
with  Hyder  AH,  Portugal  and  the  Barbary  powers  were  bound 
with  treaties.  Then,  in  June,  1779,  with  the  earnest  expression  of 
indignation  at  the  scornful  treatment  of  her  plans  for  peace,  and 
protestations  against  English  encroachments  on  Spanish  com- 
merce and  territory,  Spain  declared  war  on  England,  hoping  to 
regain  Gibraltar  and  Florida,  the  keys  of  the  two  great  inland 
seas. 

The  Spanish  Conquest  followed,  and  this  region  again  came 
under  the  sway  of  Louisiana. 

Louisiana  Relations,  1798-1803.  In  the  early  part  of  1798  Win- 
throp  Sargent,  secretary  and  acting  governor  of  the  Northwest 
Territory,  was  engaged  in  suppressing  an  uprising  of  disaffected 
spirits  under  the  French  flag  in  the  Illinois  country,  so  impairing 
his  health  that  he  was  really  unfit  to  assume  the  government  of 
the  Mississippi  territory.  He  was  embarrassed  after  coming  to 
Natchez  by  the  presence  of  some  of  the  Northwestern  French 
sympathizers,  while  he  was  organizing  militia  under  rumors  of  a 
French  hostile  fleet  oif  the  Balize.  Mississippi  territory  was  ex- 
pected to  be  the  theatre  of  war,  as  Louisiana  would  undoubtedly  be 
involved.  Congress  called  for  troops,  on  account  of  the  relations 
with  France.  Gov.  Sargent  wrote  to  Andrew  Ellicott,  September 
10,  1798:  "I  cannot  close  without  congratulating  you  that  the  old 
and  illustrious  commander  of  our  armies  has  again  resumed  the 
sword,  and  his  example  has  been  followed  by  a  whole  train  of 
worthies — Knox,  Pinckney  and  Hand,  major-generals;  Hamilton, 
inspector,  and  a  whole  host  of  brigadiers.  Military  ardour  beats 
high,  and  the  whole  American  world  are  in  arms.  The  president 
is  authorized  to  banish  aliens,  as  he  shall  think  proper,  and  I  have 
seen  the  skeleton  of  a  pretty  comfortable  sedition  bill,  which  has 
since  passed  the  house." 

At  the  same  time  the  governor  informed  the  secretary  of  state 
that  the  opinion  was  prevalent  at  Natchez  that  Louisiana  would 
be  acquired  by  the  French,  and  that  the  Creoles,  who  would  fight 
for  such  a  government,  could  raise  an  army  of  2,500.  "The  In- 
dians (now  I  fear  wavering),  would  be  induced  to  join  them,  and 
in  the  aggregate  constitute  an  enemy  by  no  means  contemptible 
to  the  United  States."  He  advised  the  organizing  of  volunteers 
in  the  west  to  prevent  the  possession  of  Louisiana  by  the  French, 
with  provision  for  "early  arrangement  and  sudden  execution." 


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MISSISSIPPI  127 

Early  in  1799  an  address  was  sent  to  the  government  pledging 
the  loyalty  of  Natchez  district  in  the  expected  war  with  France. 
But  the  relations  with  Louisiana  were  peaceful.  There  were  com- 
munications between  the  governors  regarding  the  passage  of 
fugitives  from  justice  and  deserters  across  the  line,  and  the  chronic 
war  of  the  Choctaws  and  Chickasaws  with  the  Osage  Indians  west 
of  the  Mississippi  gave  some  annoyance,  but  the  only  serious 
apprehension  of  a  revival  of  old  troubles  was  when  the  Spanish 
governor,  Marquis  de  Casa  Calvo,  began  negotiations  with  the 
Choctaws  in  1799.  It  appeared  that  the  Spanish  were  sending 
out  presents  lavishly,  were  sour  about  the  loss  of  trade,  and  were 
inviting  the  Choctaws  to  a  council  without  regard  to  the  terri- 
torial limits.  The  object  seemed  to  be  peaceful,  however,  and  was 
doubtless  connected  with  the  business  of  William  Panton,  the 
main  spring  of  a  great  part  of  Spanish  policy.  William  Augustus 
Bowles  was  loose  again  on  the  Florida  coast,  in  the  bay  of  Apa- 
lachee,  and  the  military  preparation  that  alarmed  Gov.  Sargent 
was  for  a  naval  expedition  to  capture  again  that  perennial  thorn 
in  the  flesh  of  Panton  and  the  Spanish  government.  On  reaching 
Pensacola  later  the  expedition  was  blockaded  by  privateers,  but 
Bowles  was  finally  captured  and  lodged  in  Moro  castle.  Sargent 
feared  that  the  Choctaws  would  be  armed  by  the  Spanish  and 
enabled  to  express  by  hostilities  their  dissatisfaction  at  the  slow- 
ness of  the  United  States  in  fulfilling  promises,  but  there  was  no 
disturbance  of  the  peace.  The  Spanish  government  seems  to  have 
acted  in  good  faith  in  regard  to  the  threatened  obstruction  by  the 
Choctaws  of  the  Ellicott  survey. 

In  the  treaty  of  San  Lorenzo  it  was  agreed  that  the  United 
States  should  have  a  place  at  New  Orleans  for  depositing  goods 
for  export,  from  which  they  could  be  loaded  on  ocean  going  ships. 
The  right  of  deposit  at  New  Orleans  was  to  run  three  years, 
from  the  ratification  of  the  treaty  (1796),  when  the  king  had  the 
option  to  extend  it  or  designate  some  other  place.  (See  Treaty  of 
San  Lorenzo.)  The  language  was  somewhat  ambiguous.  Spain 
did  not  recognize  the  treaty  as  in  force  until  1798,  and  in  the  fol- 
lowing year  the  intendant  of  Louisiana,  Juan  Morales,  considering 
the  three  years  as  expired,  issued  an  order  prohibiting  the  use 
of  a  depot  at  New  Orleans,  and  naming  no  other  place.  This 
aroused  great  indignation  througiiout  the  west,  to  which  the  gen- 
eral government  responded.  War  with  France  then  seemed  in- 
evitable, and  the  raising  of  an  army  was  authorized  by  Congress, 
to  be  commanded  by  Gen.  Washington.  Daniel  Clark,  Jr.,  of  New 
Orleans,  was  at  Natchez  in  October,  1799,  on  his  way  to  the  cap- 
ital to  give  the  government  information  regarding  the  Morales 
order.  Gen.  Wilkinson,  a  little  while  before  this  order  was  made, 
took  boat  at  New  Orleans,  after  visiting  Gov.  Gayoso  and  Intend- 
ant Morales.  The  latter  reported  to  his  government  that  in 
"moments  of  effusion,"  "moments  when  the  individuals  of  that 
nation  are  in  the  habit  of  opening  their  hearts,"  (to  arrive  at  which 
moments,  it  appears,  Gayoso  sacrificed  his  life. — Gayarre,  III,  403, 


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128  MISSISSIPPI 

405),  the  General  said  he  would  see  the  president  and  return  with 
full  authority  to  help  the  Spanish  against  England,  provided  Spain 
did  not  declare  war  against  the  United  States.  Monette  (Vol.  I, 
543)  says  that  under  the  appearance  of  war  with  France,  the 
United  States  was  at  this  time  preparing  to  "redress  the  wrongs 
upon  American  rights  and  commerce  on  the  Mississippi,  which 
were  more  pressing  than  those  from  France  on  the  ocean."  In 
the  Wilkinson  papers,  says  Edward  Everett  Hale,  who  looked  over 
them  before  they  were  burned,  was  a  full  account  of  "the  proposal 
of  John  Adams,  when  he  was  president,  to  move  an  army  from 
Cincinnati  down  the  river  and  take  New  Orleans.  The  arniy  was 
to  be  under  the  care  of  General  Hamilton."  (M.  H.  S.,  IV,  284.) 
If  Adams  had  done  this,  he  would  have  had  a  second  term,  Sar- 
gent also,  perhaps.  Intendant  Lopez  y  AnguUo,  who  took  office 
January  1,  1800,  made  concessions,  and  commerce  was  revived.  In 
the  fall  of  the  same  year  Spain  secretly  ceded  Louisiana  to  Napo- 
leon, by  the  Treaty  of  San  Ildephonso.  The  secret  treaty  was  con- 
firmed by  the  treaty  of  Madrid,  March  21,  1801,  which,  though  its 
terms  were  kept  secret,  was  known  in  Paris  and  London  and  com- 
municated by  Rufus  King  to  the  United  States  government  within 
a  few  weeks.  It  soon  became  known  also,  as  a  rumor,  on  the 
Mississippi,  for  Judge  Lewis  wrote  to  Gov.  Claiborne,  then  at 
Nashville,  September  3:  "It  seems  to  be  confirmed  that  Spain 
has  actually  agreed  to  give  up  Louisiana  to  France."  Claiborne 
commented,  "I  know  not  what  grounds  there  are  for  this  report, 
but  it  has  prevailed  in  this  State  (Tennessee)  for  several  months 
and  obtained  general  belief." 

It  was  a  saying  of  Montesquieu  that  "it  is  happy  for  trading 
powers  that  God  has  permitted  Turks  and  Spaniards  to  be  in  the 
world,  since  of  all  nations  they  are  the  most  proper  to  possess  a 
great  empire  with  insignificance."  That  the  French  should  again 
come  into  possession  of  the  western  empire  the  United  States 
could  not  permit.  Consequently  the  rumors  of  cession  were  a 
presage  of  war,  and  this  occupied  the  mind  of  Gov.  Claiborne  dur- 
ing his  administration,  explaining  in  part  his  activity  in  regard  to 
the  militia.  The  diplomatic  negotiations  in  regard  to  the  cession 
were  begun  by  the  United  States  before  Gov.  Claiborne  arrived  at 
Natchez,  along  the  line  of  policy  of  preventing  the  transfer  or 
obtaining  New  Orleans  and  the  Floridas  as  the  price  of  agreement 
to  it.  But  the  Spanish  government  continued  at  New  Orleans,  and 
there  was  no  disturbance  in  relations  with  Mississippi  until  by 
proclamation  of  October  16,  1802,  Morales  again  suspended  the 
right  of  deposit.  The  government  was  at  this  time,  and  probably 
had  been  for  some  time,  worse  than  that  of  Turkey,  as  the  French 
commissioner  observed.  Bribes  were  necessary  to  do  business 
with  all  departments.  Morales  claimed  that  suspension  of  the 
right  of  deposit  was  necessary  because  the  Americans  could  de- 
posit their  goods  "without  paying  anything  else  than  storage." 
Morales  also  maintained,  when  the  Spanish  minister  implored  him 
to  rescind  his  order,  that  he  alone  was  responsible,  and  the  gov- 


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MISSISSIPPI  129 

eraor  had  opposed  his  measure.  The  proclamation  was  very 
injurious  to  New  Orleans,  almost  producing  a  famine  by  stopping 
the  shipment  of  flour  and  other  western  produce,  and  aroused  a 
storm  of  protest  in  the  west,  including  another  revival  of  threats 
by  the  restless  to  secede  from  the  Union. 

The  Spanish  governor  also  refused  permission  for  the  shipment 
of  government  stores  from  Natchez  or  Fort  Adams  for  Fort  Stod- 
dert,  on  the  Tombigbee,  and  this  being  reported  by  William  E. 
Hulings,  vice  consul  at  New  Orleans,  Gov.  Claiborne  addressed 
a  remonstrance  to  the  Spanish  governor.  The  proclamation  ap- 
peared to  be  "that  the  port  of  New  Orleans  is  shut  against  for- 
eign commerce  and  the  American  deposit."  Claiborne  reported 
to  Madison:  "The  late  act  of  the  Spanish  government  at  New 
Orleans  has  excited  considerable  agitation  in  Natchez  and  its 
vicinity.  It  has  inflicted  a  severe  wound  upon  the  agricultural 
and  commercial  interest  of  this  territory,  and  must  prove  no  less 
injurious  to  all  the  western  country."  There  was  not  absolute 
prohibition  of  trade.  Americans  were  allowed  to  land  their  prod- 
uce on  payment  of  a  duty  of  six  per  cent. 

This  famous  suspension  of  the  right  of  deposit  figures  as  a 
mystery  in  history,  but  it  may  find  a  partial  explanation  in  the 
fact  that  the  United  States  proposed  to  ship  goods  for  its  new 
Choctaw  trading  post  on  the  Tombigbee  through  New  Orleans. 
This  promised  a  serious  disturbance  of  the  trade  enjoyed  by  Pan- 
ton,  Leslie  &  Co.,  who  were  at  the  same  time  humbly  beseeching 
the  United  States  to  permit  the  Choctaws  to  cede  them  a  large 
area  of  land  in  payments  of  debts  for  merchandise. 

The  reply  of  Gov.  Salcedo  to  Gov.  Claiborne  was  that  the  sus- 
pension was  the  order  of  the  intendant,  who  was  independent  of 
the  general  government  of  the  province;  but  that  it  was  in  con- 
formity with  the  king's  commands,  under  the  treaty  of  peace  in 
Europe,  suspending  the  commerce  of  neutrals,  the  king  having 
also  determined  upon  the  propriety  of  suspending  the  deposit, 
which  had  been  permitted  tacitly  to  continue.  It  was  also  alleged 
that  It  gave  rise  to  an  infinity  of  abuses  and  frauds  upon  the  Span- 
ish government.  Salcedo  said  the  matter  had  been  submitted  to 
the  home  government,  the  orders  of  which  would  be  obeyed. 
Meanwhile,  the  order  was  rigorously  enforced,  so  much  so,  the 
governor  of^  Mississippi  reported,  that  when  a  cotton  boat  was  up- 
set by  the  wind  opposite  New  Orleans,  there  was  some  difficulty 
in  obtaining  permission  to  place  the  cotton  taken  from  the  river 
on  the  levee. 

Gov.  Claiborne  wrote  to  Madison  January  3,  1803: 

"The  violation  of  the  treaty,  so  far  as  related  to  the  deposit  at 
Orleans,  gave  rise  to  much  agitation  in  this  territory,  and  the 
recent  attack  upon  every  principle  of  friendly  intercourse  and  of 
those  acts  of  civility  which  ought  to  take  place  between  two  na- 
tions in  a  state  of  peace,  has  rendered  the  ferment  still  greater. 
We  have  in  this  part  of  the  Territory,  about  two  thousand  militia, 
pretty  well  organized,  and  with  a  portion  of  this  force   (say  six 

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130  MISSISSIPPI 

hundred  men)  my  opinion  is  that  New  Orleans  might  be  taken 
possession  of,  provided  there  should  be  only  Spanish  troops  to 
defend  the  place.  I  deem  it  my  duty  to  inform  you  that  there 
are  in  Orleans  and  on  the  coast  a  number  of  inhabitants  devoted 
to  the  American  interest,  and  in  the  event  of  hostilities  would 
most  certainly  join  the  American  standard." 

(This  is  the  letter  as  recorded  in  the  governor's  journal.  J.  F. 
H.  Claiborne's  Mississippi  gives  two  versions  of  it  (pp.  239,  243), 
neither  of  which  is  correct,  and  one  is  a  curious  distortion.) 

In  acknowledging  Gov.  Claiborne's  communication  that  the 
Morales  order  was  without  the  direct  command  of  either  the  gov- 
ernment of  Spain  or  Louisiana,  the  governor  was  informed  that 
James  Monroe  had  been  appointed  (in  January)  minister  pleni- 
potentiary and  extraordinary,  immediately  to  France  and  eventu- 
ally, if  expedient,  to  Spain,  for  the  purpose  of  more  effectually 
securing  and  if  practical  enlarging  the  rights  of  the  United  States 
on  the  Mississippi  and  the  territories  eastward  thereof.  A  letter 
was  also  sent  to  the  government  at  New  Orleans  through  Gk)v. 
Claiborne,  from  the  Spanish  minister,  asking  that  the  order  of 
suspension  be  revoked.  Claiborne  forwarded  this  letter  to  Rul- 
ings in  February,  1803. 

Claiborne  wrote  in  March,  1803,  that  Mr.  Monroe's  mission  was 
highly  satisfactory  to  most  of  the  reflecting  citizens  of*  the  Terri- 
tory, "but  there  are  some  few  characters  among  us  (from  whose 
standing  in  society  a  contrary  conduct  was  expected),  who  either 
from  sinister  views  or  sanguine  temperaments  reprobate  the  pol- 
icy pursued,  and  have  not  been  wanting  in  exertions  to  inflame 
the  public  and  excite  among  them  a  spirit  of  discontent." 

January  5,  1803,  according  to  the  historian  Claiborne,  the  gen- 
eral assembly  adopted  resolutions  of  protest  against  the  suspen- 
sion of  the  right  of  deposit. 

Morales  persisted  in  his  policy,  yielding  enough,  however,  to 
propose  to  admit  flour  and  provisions  subject  to  a  duty  of  six  per 
cent,  if  for  the  Louisiana  market,  or  if  for  export  subject  to  addi- 
tional duty,  and  no  export  permitted  except  in  Spanish  bottoms. 
General  Wilkinson  claimed  that  he  secured  this  concession  by 
negotiation  from  Fort  Adams.  It  seems  that  actually,  there  was 
no  great  inconvenience  from  the  order.  Gov.  Claiborne  wrote  in 
March,  1803:  "The  western  boats  are  arriving  daily  at  Natchez; 
our  markets  are  low,  but  there  is  no  difficulty  in  exporting  prod- 
uce from  hence  to  the  Atlantic  states  or  to  Europe.  There  are 
many  vessels  yet  lying  opposite  to  New  Orleans  waiting  for 
return  cargoes,  and  there  are  several  more  on  their  passage  to 
Natchez  in  quest  of  freight  which  I  understand  is  not  high."  In 
the  absence  of  permission  to  land  goods,  the  river  boats  trans- 
ferred their  cargoes  to  the  ocean  vessels  as  they  lay  at  anchor  in 
the  river. 

The  prospect  of  French  occupation  revived  the  talk  of  separat- 
ing the  Mississippi  vallev  from  the  United  States.  Daniel  Clark 
wrote  of  the  French  prefect  that  had  been  sent  to  New  Orleans: 


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MISSISSIPPI  131 

"He  has  already  talked  of  mountains  as  natural  boundaries  and 
the  advantages  to  be  gained  by  the  western  people  by  the  occupa- 
tion of  this  country  by  the  French."  Encouraged  by  a  letter  from 
the  Mingo  Pooskoos,  of  the  Chickasawhay  towns,  the  Chevalier 
Villiers  was  sent  among  the  Choctaws  to  engage  their  friendship 
against  the  United  States.  So  Power  reported  to  Wilkinson. 
Power  himself  proposed  to  be  a  Frenchman  if  necessary,  but  un- 
der all  conditions,  he  would  be  loyal  to  the  great  project  he  had 
in  common  with  Wilkinson. 

But  Napoleon  was  compelled  to  abandon  his  "darling  project" 
of  a  partition  of  North  America  with  the  English  speaking  peo- 
ples. He  gave  peace  to  the  world  in  the  treaty  of  Amiens.  But 
regarding  the  subject  of  Louisiana  England  was  ominously  silent 
during  those  negotiations.  She  chose  to  misconstrue  the  purpose 
of  the  navy  Napoleon  was  fitting  out  in  the  Dutch  ports  for  New 
Orleans.  The  house  of  Hanover  could  not  submit  to  French  pre- 
dominance in  Germany,  nor  English  merchants  endure  French 
control  of  the  gulf  of  Mexico.  The  British  made  counter  demon- 
strations that  forced  from  Napoleon  the  protest  "I  must  have  Malta 
or  war."  It  became  evident  that  to  persist  in  his  plan  of  paying 
his  soldiers  with  grants  of  land  in  America,  meant  an  alliance  of 
England  and  the  United  States.  Denied  his  dream  of  peace  with 
supremacy  on  two  continents  he  sold  Louisiana  to  the  United 
States  and  gave  the  signal  for  war  on  England. 

Gov.  Claiborne  was  notified  November  9,  1803,  of  his  appoint- 
ment as  commissioner,  with  Gen.  Wilkinson,  to  take  possession 
of  New  Orleans  and  the  province  of  Louisiana,  also  as  successor 
of  the  Spanish  governor-general  until  a  form  of  government  should 
be  devised.  Wilkinson  had  been  busy  lately  retracing  the  boun- 
dary of  Mobile  district,  north  of  the  31st  parallel,  and  acting  in 
connection  with  Indian  affairs  in  Georgia,  and  his  absence  caused 
the  governor  much  anxiety.  *  Spain  had  remonstrated  against  the 
sale  of  the  province  by  Napoleon,  and  it  was  prudent  to  be  pre- 
pared for  hostilities.  The  governor  consulted  with  Captain  Tur- 
ner, the  commandant  at  Fort  Adams,  regarding  the  military  escort, 
made  his  best  efforts,  with  discouraging  results,  to  get  out  the 
militia,  and  corresponded  with  Daniel  Clark,  consul  at  New  Or- 
leans, regarding  the  situation  there.  Though  the  responses  from 
Clark  and  the  French  prefect,  Laussat,  were  promising  of  peace, 
the  governor  believed  a  show  of  military  strength  would  have  a 
good  effect. 

Prefect  Laussat  was  visited  at  New  Orleans  November  23  by 
Gen.  Wilkinson,  on  his  way  from  Pensacola  to  meet  Gov.  Claiborne 
at  Fort  Adams,  and  just  as  the  general  was  being  ushered  out,  an 
officer  delivered  the  instructions  of  Napoleon  for  taking  posses- 
sion of  Louisiana  and  delivering  it  to  the  United  States.  Laussat 
took  possession  for  France  November  30.  The  Spanish  garrison 
having  departed,  Daniel  Clark  organized  a  battalion  of  Ameri- 
cans and  French  Creoles,  about  300  in  all,  to  maintain  order  in  the 
interim.     Among  these  were  Col.  Reuben  Kemper,  George  Mar- 


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132  MISSISSIPPI 

tin,  George  King,  George  Newman,  Benjamin  Morgan,  Dr.  Will- 
iam Flood  and  Woodson  Wren,  the  latter  afterward  a  postmaster 
and  court  clerk  at  Natchez. 

At  Natchez,  December  1,  Claiborne  was  able  to  embark  for  Fort 
Adams  a  company  of  the  Natchez  artillery,  another  of  riflemen, 
and  a  company  of  militia  infantry,  in  all  about  a  hundred  men, 
upon  the  schooner  Bilboa,  which  he  found  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  river  and  impressed  as  a  transport.  He  followed  by  land  next 
day.  Then  followed  a  long  delay  at  the  fort.  The  boats  for  the 
expedition  were  not  yet  completed.  On  December  8  he  wrote: 
"An  embarkation  is  talked  of  on  tomorrow,  but  so  many  prepara- 
tory arrangements  yet  remain  to  be  performed,  that  I  fear  much 
longer  delay.  Our  militia  were  mustered  this  morning  and 
amount  to  about  two  hundred."  The  regular  troops  numbered 
about  250. 

"On  the  17th  of  December,  the  two  American  commissioners 
encamped  within  two  miles  of  New  Orleans."  After  communi- 
cating with  Laussat,  they  visited  his  house,  "with  an  escort  of 
thirty  of  the  Mississippi  horse  volunteers,  and,  on  their  approach, 
were  saluted  with  nineteen  guns."  Laussat,  with  an  escort,  re- 
turned the  call.  Dec.  20,  the  American  troops  marched  into  the 
walled  city,  through  the  gate,  greeted  by  a  salute  of  21  guns,  and 
formed  upon  the  plaza  (now  Jackson  square)  facing  the  Louisiana 
militia.  At  the  city  hall  there  was  the  formal  reading  and  ex- 
change of  documents,  after  which  Laussat  proclaimed  the  transfer 
of  the  province  and  handed  the  keys  of  the  city  to  the  governor 
of  Mississippi,  who  then  arose  and  spoke,  welcoming  the  inhabi- 
tants upon  their  future  participation  in  the  rights  of  American 
citizens.  The  French  tricolor  dropped,  the  stars  and  stripes  went 
up,  the  signal  gun  boomed,  and  the  roar  of  cannon  sounded  from 
the  batteries  and  boats,  in  which  joyous  tumult  the  Natchez  artil- 
lery and  their  brass  field  piece  had  due  participation. 

Monette  says  (II,  354)  the  governor's  "military  escort  consisted 
of  a  company*  of  volunteer  cavalry,  under  the  command  of  Capt. 
Benjamin  Farrar,  the  first  troop  ever  formed  in  the  territory,  and 
one  which  for  many  years  afterward  maintained  an  elevated  char- 
acter for  patriotism  and  chivalrous  bearing." 

Tennessee  troops  arrived  in  time,  perhaps,  to  join  the  expedi- 
tion, though  th^y  had  not  arrived  at  the  date  of  Claiborne's  last 
letters  from  Fort  Adams.  It  is  certain  that  Col.  Doherty's  Ten- 
nessee regiment  of  mounted  infantry  spent  the  month  of  January 
at  Natchez  and  vicinity.  Some  of  them  were  in  hospital  at  Fort 
Dearborn  under  the  care  of  Dr.  John  W.  Tulloch. 

Until  January,  1804,  the  Spanish  flag  still  waved  at  Concord, 
across  the  river  from  Natchez.  Maj.  F.  L.  Claiborne  wrote  Jan- 
uary 10:  "On  Thursday,  ten  o'clock.  Concord  will  be  taken  pos- 
session of.  If  Colonel  West  will  honor  us  with  his  company  on 
the  occasion,  it  will  be  gratifyine." 

Louisville,  the  countv  seat  of  Winston  countv,  is  an  incorporated 
post-town  on  the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas  City  R.  R.,  about  46 


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MISSISSIPPI  133 

miles  southwest  of  Columbus,  and  95  miles  northeast  of  Jackson. 
It  was  named  in  honor  of  Colonel  Louis  Winston,  an  early  settler. 
The  new  extension  of  the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas  City  R.  R.„  has 
recently  been  completed  from  Mobile  to  Middleton,  Tenn.,  so  that 
the  old  town  is  now  provided  with  good  shipping  facilities.  The 
region  about  it  is  devoted  to  farming  and  stock  raising.  Ix)uisville 
has  a  court  house,  a  State  Normal  School,  four  hotels,  and  the  fol- 
lowing church  buildings:  Methodist,  Baptist,  Presbyterian,  Cum- 
berland Presbyterian  and  Catholic.  Among  its  important  industries 
are  two  cotton  gins,  a  saw  mill,  a  spoke  factory,  and  two  brick  man- 
ufacturing plants.  The  Winston  County  Journal,  a  Democratic 
weekly,  was  established  here  in  1892.  The  Bank  of  Louisville  was 
established  in  1903 ;  it  is  a  branch  of  the  Grenada  Bank,  one  of  the 
strongest  financial  institutions  in  the  State.  The  following  fraternal 
orders  have  lodges  here :  Masons,'  Odd  Fellows,  Knights  of  Pythias 
and  the  Woodmen  of  the  World.  The  population  of  Louisville  in 
1900  was  505 ;  in  1906  it  was  estimated  at  1,200. 

Love  Station,  a  small  village  in  the  southern  part  of  De  Soto 
county,  on  the  line  of  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.  It  is  situated  about 
5  miles  south  of  the  county  seat,  Hernando,  and  has  a  population 
of  131.  In  the  early  days  of  the  county.  Dr.  W.  R.  Love  was  a 
prominent  physician  and  planter  of  the  locality.  A  money  order 
postoffice  is  maintained  here. 

Love,  William  Franklin,  was  born  March  29,  1852,  in  Amite 
county,  Mississippi,  near  Liberty.  He  was  educated  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  Mississippi,  and  was  a  planter  by  profession.  He  was 
elected  to  the  legislature  for  ten  years,  and  to  the  State  senate  for 
eight  years.  He  was  a  dekgate  to  the  Constitutional  convention 
in  1890,  and  in  1896  was  elected  to  the  55th  congress.  He  died  in 
office,  Qctober  16,  1898. 

Lovell,  William  S.,  was  born  at  Washington,  D.  C,  November, 
1829,  son  of  Dr.  Joseph  Lovell,  surgeon-general  of  the  United 
States  army.  After  the  death  of  his  parents  in  1836  he  resided 
with  an  aunt  in  New  York,  and  in  1845  was  matriculated  at  Will- 
iams college,  Mass.,  which  he  left  to  enter  the  United  States  navy. 
He  was  on  duty  oif  the  coast  of  Africa  in  1848,  and  in  1850  sailed 
as  second  officer  of  the  brig  Advance,  in  the  Grinnell  expedition 
in  search  of  Sir  John  Franklin.  His  ship  was  frozen  in  the  ice 
for  260  days.  He  passed  the  examinations  at  Annapolis  in  1853, 
and  after  a  South  American  cruise,  sailed  in  1855  again  for  the 
arctic  regions  as  master  and  executive  officer  in  the  successful 
search  for  Dr.  Kane.  He  received  for  this  service  medals  from 
Queen  Victoria  and  was  promoted  to  lieutenant.  In  June,  1858, 
he  married  Antonia,  daughter  of  Gen.  John  A.  Quitman,  of  Nat- 
chez, and  in  the  following  year  resigned  his  commission  and  en- 
gaged in  planting  with  his  brother,  Joseph  Lovell,  afterward  a 
Confederate  general.  In  1860  he  organized  at  Natchez  the  Quit- 
man Light  Artillery,  with  which  he  went  to  Pensacola  as*  captain, 
in  the  spring  of  1861.  There  he  was  made  chief  of  harbor  police, 
and  soon  promoted  to  major  and  ordered  to  New  Orleans,  where 


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134  MISSISSIPPI 

he  became  lieutenant-colonel  of  the  22d  Louisiana  regiment,  and 
had  charge  of  arming  the  river  defense  vessels,  on  the  staflf  of  his 
brother.  After  the  fall  of  Kew  Orleans  he  was  inspector-general 
on  the  staff  of  Gen.  Pemberton,  with  headquarters  at  Vicksburg. 
In  1864  he  ran  the  blockade  at  Wilmington,  N.  C,  to  take  command 
of  a  blockade  runner,  and  was  at  London  for  this  purpose  when 
the  war  closed.  Returning  to  Natchez  he  resumed  the  work  of 
planting  and  after  the  death  of  his  brother  in  1869,  was  one  of  the 
greatest  planters  in  the  South. 

Lowy  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Smith  county,  12 
miles  distant  from  Raleigh,  the  county  seat.  It  is  a  station  on  the 
Laurel  branch  of  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,*8  miles  north  of  Mt. 
Olive,  the  nearest  banking  town.    Population  in  1900,  45. 

Lowndes  County  was  erected  January  30,  1830,  and  was  named 
for  William  Jones  Lowndes,  member  of  Congress  for  South  Caro- 
lina. The  county  has  a  land  surface  of  504  square  miles.  It  was 
originally  the  southern  part  of  Monroe  county  and  embraced  within 
its  area  a  part  of  the  present  county  of  Clay.  The  act  creating  the 
county  defined  its  boundaries  as  follows:  "All  that  portion  of 
Monroe  county  lying  south  of  a  line  commencing  at  a  point  on  the 
State  of  Alabama,  where  a  line  running  due  east  from  Robinson's 
bluff,  on  the  Buttahatchie  river,  would  strike  the  state  line  of 
Alabama;  thence  from  said  point,  due  west,  to  said  Robinson's 
bluff ;  thence  down  the  said  river  to  its  mouth ;  thence  west,  to  the 
western  boundary  line  of  the  county  of  Monroe,  as  designated  by 
the  act  of  1829,  extending  process  into  the  territory  occupied  by  the 
Chickasaw  and  Choctaw  tribes  of  Indians,  shall  form  a  new  county, 
etc."  December  6,.  1831,  its  limits  were  extended  "to  commence  on 
the  State  line  of  Alabama,  at  the  house  of  William  Lucas,  and  to 
run  from  thence  in  a  northwest  direction,  so  as  to  cross  the  Robert- 
son road,  at  a  place  on  said  Robertson's  road,  known  by  the  name 
of  Wilson's  stand,  so  as  to  include  said  Wilson's  stand ;  and  from 
thence  on  a  direct  line  from  the  place  of  beginning  until  said  line 
strikes  the  Natchez  trace;  and  from  thence  north,  along  the  said 
Natchez  trace  to  the  northern  boundary  line  of  said  county  of 
Lowndes."  And  again  Dec.  23, 1833,  it  was  extended  to  include  "all 
the  territory  south  of  a  line,  running  from  the  junction  of  the  But- 
tahatchie river,  with  the  Tombigbee  river,  to  the  northeast  corner 
of  Oktibbeha  county,  and  east  of  and  between  Oktibbeha  county 
and  the  Tombigbee  river,  and  north  of  Noxubee  county."  Finally 
in  1871,  its  northern  and  western  limits  were  modified,  when  some 
of  its  area  was  taken  to  form  part  of  the  county  of  Clay  (q.  v.). 

The  first  County  Court  convened  at  Columbus,  April  12,  1830, 
and  consisted  of  Thomas  Sampson,  President,  and  Micajah  Brooks, 
Samuel  B.  Morgan,  Associates.  Other  county  officials  the  same 
year  were  R.  D.  Haden,  County  Clerk;  Nimrod  Davis,  Sheriff; 
John  H.  Morris,  Assessor  and  Collector;  O.  P.  Brown,  County 
Treasurer,  and  William  L.  Moore,  County  Surveyor. 

Lowndes  county  has  long  been  known  as  one  of  the  most  pros- 
perous and  wealthy  sections  of  the  State.    As  early  as  1817,  some 


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MISSISSIPPI  135 

scattered  settlements  were  made  in  this  region,  and  in  1818  Dr. 
Gideon  Lincecum  built  the  first  house  on  the  present  site  of  Colum- 
bus. His  autobiography  contains  the  following  reference  to  this 
incident:  *'We  made  preparation  to  set  out  (from  Tuscaloosa, 
Ala.)  on  November  1,.  1818.  In  the  afternoon  of  the  twelfth  day 
we  reached  the  Tombigbee  river,  three  miles  above  where  Columbus 
now  stands,  and  there  I  made  my  camp.  Father  went  two  hundred 
yards  below  and  pitched  his  tent.  As  soon  as  I  got  my  house  done, 
I  went  over  the  river  to  see  the  Choctaws.  After  the  road  was 
made  by  the  government  from  Nashville  to  Natchez,  which  crossed 
the  river  where  Columbus  now  stands,  I  went  down  there  to  see 
what  kind  of  a  place  it  was.  I  thought  it  was  an  eligible  town  site. 
I  was  so  fully  impressed  with  this  belief,  that  I  went  home  and  rived 
a  thousand  boards,  put  them  on  a  raft  and  floated  them  down  the 
river  with  the  intention  of  building  a  snug  little  house  on  a  nice 
place  I  had  selected.  I  was  not  the  only  person  that  had  noticed 
the  eligibility  of  that  locality,  for  when  I  got  down  to  the  place,  a 
man  named  Coldwell  was  about  landing  a  keel-boat.  He  was  from 
Tuscaloosa  (Ala.)  and  had  a  cargo  of  Indian  goods  which  he  cal- 
culated on  opening  on  that  bluff  as  soon  as  he  could  build  a  house 
to  put  them  in.  I  proposed  to  sell  him  my  boards  and  he  in  turn 
proposed  to  sell  me  his  goods.  After  some  parleying,  I  took  the 
goods,  hired  his  boat  hands  and  went  to  work,  and  in  three  days 
had  knocked  up  a  pretty  good  shanty.  We  soon  got  the  goods  into 
it  and  commenced  opening  boxes  and  taking  stock ;  but  the  Indians 
heard  of  the  arrival  and  flocked  in  by  hundreds.  I  began  selling 
whiskey  and  such  goods  as  we  had  marked,  and  this  prevented  us 
from  work  in  the  day  time.  Having  only  night  time  to  work  on  the 
invoice,  it  took  ten  days  to  get  through,  but  I  had  sold  enough  to 
pay  the  first  installment  and  Coldwell  went  home  highly  pleased. 
I  bartered  with  the  Indians  for  every  kind  of  produce,  consisting  of 
cowhides,  deer  skins,  all  kinds  of  furs,  skins,  buck  horns,  cow  horns, 
peas,  beans,  peanuts,  pecans,  hickory  nuts,  honey,  beeswax,  blow- 
guns,  etc.  Every  article  brought  cash  at  100  per  cent,  on  cost.  I  made 
frequent  trips  to  Mobile  for  sugar,  coifee  and  whiskey,  staple  articles 
in  the  Indian  trade,  but  all  my  drygoods  came  from  the  house  of 
Dallas  and  Wilcox,  Philadelphia." 

That  portion  of  the  county  lying  east  of  the  Tombigbee  river  is 
older  historically  by  fourteen  years  than  the  western  part,  as  the 
former  came  under  territorial  control  by  the  Choctaw  cession  of 
1816,  while  the  western  part  was  not  acquired  until  the  Choctaw 
cession  of  1830.  The  first  white  man  to  reside  permanently  upon 
the  soil  of  what  is  now  Lowndes  county,  was  Major  John  Pitchlyn, 
(q.  V.)  the  son  of  an  English  army  officer,  who  was  reared  from  boy- 
hood among  the  Choctaws,  and  was  in  after  life  the  sworn  inter- 
preter of  the  United  States  in  various  treaties  and  dealings  with  the 
Choctaws. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  pioneer  settlers  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Tombigbee,  as  compiled  by  William  A.  Love,  in  his  interest- 
ing sketch  of  Lowndes  county:     Settlers  in  1817,  John  Halbert, 


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Silas  McBee,  Benjamin  Hewson ;  1818,  Thomas  Cummings,  William 
Butler,  Peter  Nail,  William  H.  Craven,  Newton  Beckwith,  John 
McGowan,  Westley  Ross,  A.  Cook,  James  Brownlee,  John  Port- 
wood,  Thomas  Kincaid,  Ezekiel  Nash,  Wm.  Weaver,  Thomas 
Cooper,  Cincinnatus  Cooper,  Conrad  Hajckleman,  David  Alsop, 
Spirus  Roach,  Thomas  O.  Sampson,  Hezekiah  Lincecum,  Gideon 
Lincecum ;  1819,  Robert  D.  Haden,  Ovid  P.  Brown,  Richard  Barry, 
Dr.  B.  C.  Barry,  Martin  Sims,  Bartlet  Sims,  William  Cocke,  Thomas 
Townsend,  William  L.  Moore,  Wm.  Ellis,  Wm.  Leech,  John  Egger. 
In  the  extreme  southwestern  part  of  the  county  was  an  old 
postoffire  known  as  Dailey's  Cross  Roads  for  its  postmaster  John 
A.  Dai^ey.  Another  old  postoffice  that  antedated  the  building  of 
the  ra'lways,  was  Prairie  Hill,  in  the  west  central  part  of  the  county. 
The  early  settlements  at  Plymouth,  West  Port,  Nashville  and 
Moore''^  Bluff,  are  now  all  extinct,  but  were  important  trading 
points  on  the  Tombigbee  river  in  the  early  history  of  the  county. 
(See  v^Ve^ches  of  above  towns  under  separate  titles.)  These  early 
settlers  were  attracted  from  the  older  states  by  the  richness  of  the 
count>\  its  contiguity  to  a  fine  navigable  stream,  its  mild  climate 
and  the  fact  that  the  "Military  Road,"  from  New  Orleans  to  Nash- 
ville, opened  by  U.  S.  troops  1817-1820,  offered  ready  means  of 
access  to  the  region.  A  little  later,  when  the  Indian  lands  were 
offered  for  sale,  settlers  came  in  rapidly,  and  as  early  as  1837,  the 
county  had  a  population  of  5,495  whites  and  7,362  slaves.  Columbus 
was  an  incorporated  town  in  1822  and  by  1837  had  a  population  of 
about  3,500  and  was  the  center  of  a  thriving  trade  for  all  the  sur- 
rounding region.  It  is  the  county  seat  and  is  a  thriving  place  of 
12,000  inhabitants,  located  on  tjie  east  bank  of  the  Tombigbee  river, 
at  the  junction  of  the  Mobile  &  Ohio,  and  the  Southern  railways, 
giving  it  excellent  shipping  connections  north,  south,  east  and  west. 
It  is  an  unusually  attractive  city  and  the  home  of  much  wealth 
and  culture.  It  is  one  of  the  largest  manufacturing  centers  in  the 
northern  part  of  the  State,  being  grouped  with  Corinth,  Biloxi  and 
Scranton  by  the  returns  of  the  last  census.  Besides  !ts  industrial 
enterprises,  it  is  the  seat  of  one  of  Mississippi's  most  noteworthy 
schools — The  Industrial  Institute  and  College,  (q.v.)  founded  in  1884. 
This  Institution  possesses  a  noble  group  of  buildings  and  has  been 
highly  successful  in  carrying  out  the  purposes  of  its  founders,  the  in- 
dustrial and  collegiate  training  of  young  women.  Over  5,000  young 
women  have  received  its  instruction  and  over  700  are  now  entered 
on  its  roll  of  attendance.  Some  of  the  more  important  villages  in 
the  county  are  Artesia  (pop.  343),  Crawford  (pop.  389),  Caledonia, 
Mayhews  Station,  and  Penn.  The  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.  crosses 
the  county  in  two  directions  and  the  Southern  Ry.  runs  from  north- 
east to  southwest  until  it  reaches  Columbus,  then  northwest  to 
Westpoint.  The  Tombigbee  river  flows  through  the  county  and  is 
navigable  to  Columbus,  and,  with  its  numerous  tributaries,  gives 
the  county  plenty  of  water  advantages.  About  one-half  of  the 
county  lies  west  of  the  Tombigbee  river  in  the  black  prairie  belt, 
a  gently  undulating,  rich  region,  well  timbered  and  producing  good 


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MISSISSIPPI  137 

crops  of  cotton,  corn,  oats,  sorghum,  wheat,  clover,  grasses  and  all 
kinds  of  fruits  and  vegetables.  The  region  east  of  the  Tombigbee 
is  not  so  rich,  the  soil  being  light  and  sandy  and  somewhat  hilly, 
but  capable  of  making  a  fine  grade  of  cotton.  A  good  deal  of 
attention  is  paid  to  raising  live  stock  and  the  industry  is  a  profitable 
one.  The  live  stock  of  the  region  was  valued  at  nearly  $700,000 
in  1900.  Churches  and  excellent  schools  abound  throughout  the 
county  and  the  climate  is  mild  and  healthful. 

The  following  statistics,  taken  from  the  twelfth  United  States 
census  for  1900,  will  be  found  instructive  and  shows  the  develop- 
ment of  the  county  in  agriculture,  manufactures  and  population  at 
that  date:  Number  of  farms  3,467,  acreage  in  farms  242,942,  acres 
improved  150,057,  value  of  the  land  exclusive  of  the  buildings 
$2,280,260,  value  of  the  buildings  $703,940,  value  of  live  stock 
$687,598,  total  value  of  products  not  fed  to  stock  $1,486,173. 

Number  of  manufacturing  establishments  103,  capital  $081,6^6, 
wages  paid  $145,733,  cost  of  materials  $404,228,  total  value  of 
products  $806,680. 

The  population  in  1900  consisted  of  7,121  whites,  21,974  colored, 
a  total  of  29,095  and  an  increase  of  2.048  over  the  year  1800.  The 
population  in  1906  was  estimated  at  35,000.  Manufacturing  has 
greatly  increased  in  the  last  five  years,  there  being  no  less  than 
$300,000  worth  of  new  investments  in  Columbus  alone.  Artesian 
water  has  been  found  in  various  parts  of  the  county.  The  public 
highways  are  improved  and  maintained  by  direct  taxation.  The 
total  assessed  valuation  of  real  and  personal  property  in  Lowndes 
county  in  1905  was  $4,675,390  and  in  1906  it  was  $5,341,632,  showing 
an  increase  during  the  year  of  $666,242. 

Lowrey,  Mark  P.,  was  born  in  McNairy  county,  Tenn.,  Decem- 
ber 29,  1828,  and  was  reared  in  poverty,  having  lost  his  father  in 
early  childhood.  Toward  the  close  of  the  war  with  Mexico  he 
went  with  a  Mississippi  company  to  that  country,  and  on  his  re- 
turn he  learned  the  craft  of  a  brickmason.  At  the  age  of  21  he 
married  Sarah  R.  Holmes,  of  Tishomingo  county.  Miss.  Three 
years  later  he  entered  the  ministry  of  the  Baptist  church,  and  in 
1860  he  was  the  pastor  at  Kossuth.  Under  the  call  for  troops  in 
the  spring  of  1861  he  raised  a  company  there,  which  was  assigned 
to  the  32d  regiment  of  which  he  was  elected  colonel,  and  commis- 
sioned April  3.  At  the  battle  of  Perryville,  Ky.,  he  commanded 
Wood's  brigade,  and  received  a  painful  wound  in  the  left  arm. 
At  the  battle  of  Chickamauga  he  again  commanded  the  brigade, 
and  his  conduct  impelled  Gen.  Cleburne,  the  division  commander, 
to  call  him  the  bravest  man  in  the  Confederate  army.  He  was 
promoted  to  brigadier-general.  As  one  of  Cleburne's  most  trusted 
generals,  he  won  new  distinction  at  Missionary  Ridge  and  Ring- 
gold Gap  and  throughout  the  Atlanta  campaign,  at  the  battles  of 
Franklin  and  Nashville,  and  in  the  last  campaign  in  the  Carolinas. 
He  was  frequently  in  command  of  a  division,  and  in  every  capacity 
proved  his  ability.  Throughout  the  war  he  continued  his  work  as 
a  preacher,  and  labored  incessantly  for  the  religious  cause.    After 


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138  MISSISSIPPI 

the  war  he  farmed  on  a  small  scale  for  the  support  of  his  family 
and  continued  preaching;  acted  as  State  evangelist  and  reorganizer 
for  his  church;  and  declined  various  suggestions  of  political 
honors.  He  was  a  well-known  writer  for  the  religious  press;  was 
for  ten  years  president  of  the  Baptist  state  convention,  and  in 
1873  founded  the  Blue  Mountain  female  college,  of  which  he  was 
president  for  12  years.  February  27,  1885,  he  died  suddenly  in 
the  railroad  depot  at  Middleton,  Tenn.  His  will,  drawn  up  not 
long. before  his  death,  closed  with  these  words:  "I  subscribe  my- 
self the  friend  of  all  humanity  and  the  humble  servant  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ." 

LfOwry,  ^Robert,  was  born  in  Chesterfield  district,  S.  C,  March 
10,  1831,  son  of  Robert  Lowry,  a  native  of  the  same  State,  of  an 
old  and  prominent  Scotch-Irish  family.  About  1833  the  elder 
Robert  Lowry  moved  with  his  family  to  west  Tennessee  and 
thence,  in  1840,  to  Tishomingo  county.  Miss.  At  the  age  of  13 
young  Robert  Lowry  went  to  the  home  of  his  uncle.  Judge  James 
Lowry,  in  Smith  county,  where,  after  a  few  years,  he  was  a  mer- 
chant at  Raleigh,  until  1851,  when  he  and  his  uncle  embarked  in 
business  at  Brandon.  Three  years  later  he  removed  to  Arkansas, 
where  he  read  law  and  was  admitted  to  practice.  Returning  after 
an  absence  of  five  years  he  became  a  partner  of  Judge  A.  G. 
Mayers,  at  Brandon.  In  1861  he  enlisted  as  a  private  in  the  Ran- 
kin Grays,  Capt.  J.  J.  Thornton,  and  at  the  organization  of  the 
Sixth  regiment  at  Grenada  in  August,  Thornton  was  elected  col- 
onel and  Lowry  major.  Under  Gen.  Albert  Sidney  Johnston  he 
served  in  Kentucky  at  the  battle  of  Sljiloh,  where  he  was  twice 
wounded.  On  the  resignation  of  Col.  Thornton  he  was  elected 
colonel  and  commissioned  in  May,  1862.  He  led  his  regiment  in 
the  famous  Mississippi  battles  of  Corinth,  Port  Gibson  and 
Baker's  Creek,  served  under  Johnston  during  the  siege  of  Vicks- 
burg,  went  with  Polk's  army  to  Georgia  in  the  spring  of  1864,  and 
thereafter  was  identified  with  the  army  of  Tennessee.  He  com- 
manded the  brigade  skirmish  line  at  the  battle  of  Kenesaw  Moun- 
tain, and  was  distinguished  for  gallant  performance  of  duty 
through  the  Atlanta  campaign.  When  Gen.  John  Adams  was  killed 
at  the  battle  of  Franklin,  Tenn.,  Nov.  30,  1864,  he  succeeded  to 
command  of  the  brigade,  and  was  commissioned  brigadier-general 
Feb.  4,  1865.  He  was  in  the  Nashville  campaign,  and  was  finally 
on  duty  with  Johnston  at  the  capitulation  at  Greensboro,  N.  C, 
April  26,  1865.  Returning  to  Brandon  he  resumed  the  practice  of 
law.  As  a  Democrat,  he  was  elected  to  the  State  senate  in  1865, 
and  during  the  subsequent  reconstruction  period  he  was  an  ardent 
worker  throughout  the  State  for  the  policy  of  his  party.  In  1878 
he  was  a  candidate  before  the  State  convention  for  nomination  for 
governor,  but  was  defeated  on  the  tenth  ballot  by  John  M.  Stone. 
In  1881  he  was  nominated  and  elected,  and  in  1885  was  reelected. 
His  residence  since  then  has  been  at  Jackson.  In  association  with 
W.  H.  McCardle  he  is  the  author  of  "A  History  of  Mississippi," 
Jackson,  1891,  also  a  school  history,  published  in  1902. 


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MISSISSIPPI  139 

LfOwry*8  Administration,  1882-90.  In  his  inaugural  address, 
January  9,  1882,  Gov.  Lowry  said  of  the  recent  election,  "The  part 
borne  in  that  contest  by  prominent  citizens  of  the  State,  not  here- 
tofore identified  with  the  successful  party,  is  worthy  to  be  men- 
tioned and  remembered."  Looking  backward,  he  recalled  the 
predictions  of  the  impossibility  of  such  race  adjustment  as  had 
been  made.  "Thanks  be  to  God,  these  gloomy  prophecies  have 
not  been  fulfilled  in  our  history.  We  have  survived,  as  best  we 
could,  the  demoralizing  effects  of  war,  and  the  domineering  evils 
incident  to  the  existence  of  peculiarly  distinct  and  different  races, 
equally  free,  under  the  same  government.  And  the  trials  of  the 
past  give  courage  and  confidence  to  the  present  and  the  future. 
Great  deeds  and  virtues  are  the  legitimate  offspring  of  great 
trials.  To  solve  successfully  the  grave  social  and  political  prob- 
lems with  which  we  yet  stand  face  to  face,  and  to  adjust  mutual 
differences  and  peculiarities  of  races  as  to  render  them  mutual 
helps,  instead  of  drawbacks  to  public  and  private  interest,  are  ob- 
jects worthy  of  the  loftiest  ambition,  and  in  which  every  citizen, 
high  and  low,  may  participate."  Of  education  he  said,  "Free  in- 
stitutions cannot  be  separated  from  free  schools.  Universal  suf- 
frage is  tolerable  only  when  connected  with  universal  education." 
Of  immigration,  "Prejudices  against  us  must  be  combatted — 
apprehensions  of  insecurity  among  us,  whether  just  or  unjust, 
must  be  removed,  and  the  advantages  and  attractions  of  the  State 
must  be  potent  factors  in  working  out  this  result."  Of  industrial 
conditions — "We  buy  too  much  and  sell  too  little.  Our  corn-cribs 
and  smoke-houses  are  too  far  from  home.  Our  income  is  princely, 
our  expenditures  are  utterly  exhausting.  .  .  .  When  life,  lib- 
erty, and  the  pursuit  of  property  are  secure,  when  the  public 
morals  are  protected,  an  efficient  system  of  public  education  estab- 
lished, and  the  public  health,  convenience  and  safety  well  guarded, 
and  all  at  the  smallest  practical  cost,  there  is  but  little  omitted  from 
the  fundamental  obligations  of  government.  Under  these  condi- 
tions, individual  action,  diversity  of  interest,  and,  above  all,  the 
production  of  the  necessaries  of  life  at  home,  ought  to  cause  the 
springs  of  prosperity  to  flowj  and  insure  contentment,  progress 
and  independence.  .  .  .  Whoever,  either  in  a  public  or  private 
capacity,  contributes  to  diversify  the  industries  of  Mississippi,  and 
to  relieve  her  from  dependence  on  other  States  and  countries,  is  a 
benefactor  to  the  State.  The  president  or  managers  of  a  successful 
factory  among  us  ought  to  be  more  highly  appreciated  and  hon- 
ored by  us  than  any  public  functionary  in  the  land." 

The  legislature  of  1882  was  very  liberal  in  appropriations,  in 
support  of  schools,  institutions  and  immigration,  exempted  new 
railroads  from  taxation  for  ten  years,  also  extended  the  same  ex- 
emption to  all  factories  hereafter  erected.  An  appropriation  of 
$16,000  was  made  for  the  relief  of  Mississippi  flood  sufferers,  which, 
with  contributions  from  the  National  government,  were  expended 
under  the  direction  of  W.  L.  Hemingway,  who  was  stationed  at 


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140  MISSISSIPPI 

Memphis,  while  the  governor  personally  aided  the  citizens*  com- 
mittee at  Vicksburg. 

The  valuation  of  realty  in  1882  was  (in  round  numbers)  $80,- 
000,000,  of  personalty  $37,000,000;  in  1883  the  increase  in  the  total 
was  $17,000,000.  The  land  valuation  of  1883  was  over  $20,000,000 
larger  than  in  1879.  This  permitted  further  reduction  of  the  tax 
rate,  or  increased  revenues  at  the  same  rate. 

The  treasury  statements  showed  receipts  in  1882,  $770,959;  ex- 
penditures, $1,057,441.  In  1883,  receipts,  $746,864;  expenditures, 
$836,500.  The  cash  balance  was  reduced  from  $545,000  at  the  be- 
ginning of  1882  to  $169,000  at  the  first  of  1884.  The  public  debt  to 
the  Chickasaw  and  Seminary  funds  was  $1,360,000;  to  the  Agri- 
cultiiral  college  fund,  $227,000.  Over  and  above  this,  if  the  debt 
to  the  Common  School  fund  ($817,646)  were  disregarded,  the 
State  debt  was  $510,000,  January  1,  1884.  The  legislature  of  1882 
increased  the  common  school  revenues  by  $100,000  per  annum  and 
decreased  the  rate  of  taxation  from  three  to  2}^  mills,  a  reduction 
equal  to  $50,000  per  annum.  These  two  items  made  a  difference 
of  $600,000  in  the  financial  transactions  of  the  State  in  the  four 
years  following.  Gov.  Lowry  commented  in  1884:  "It  is  well  to 
increase  school  facilities  and  to  reduce  taxation,  but,  unfortunately, 
both  cannot  be  done  at  the  same  time  without  increasing  the 
debt." 

He  said  in  his  first  message  to  the  legislature  of  January,  1884: 
"In  some  respects  the  history  of  Mississippi  since  the  war  is  with- 
out a  parallel  in  the  history  of  the  world."  Though  there  had 
been  accusations  of  disregard  of  law  and  order,  the  revelations  of 
the  census  of  1880  were  a  complete  disproof.  Comparing  previous 
conditions  with  those  then  existing,  he  said:  "The  public  debt 
has  been  almost  extinguished.  Taxation  has  been  reduced  from 
dyi  mills  in  1875  to  2^1  mills  in  1883.  State  and  county  taxation 
has  been  reduced  from  an  average  of  about  $27.85  on  the  $1,000 
in  1874,  to  an  average  of  about  $16  on  the  $1,000  in  1883.  All  the 
lands  forfeited  to  the  State  for  taxes  have  either  been  redeemed 
or  purchased,  except  about  700,000  acres.  In  the  last  two  years 
alone  461,783  acres  have  been  purchased  through  the  Auditor's  of- 
fice from  the  State.  There  is  a  growing  confidence  in  the  future 
as  shown  by  the  purchase  of  these  lands  and  of  435,110  acres  held 
by  the  Federal  government  in  the  last  two  years,  together  with 
the  unprecedented  homestead  entries,  amounting  to  286,283  acres. 
The  reduction  in  the  debt  and  the  rate  of  taxation  and  yearly  ex- 
penditures has  been  accomplished  without  detriment  to  the  pub- 
lic service  or  neglect  of  the  different  charitable  and  educational 
institutions.  All  these  have  been  liberally  sustained  and  new  ones 
established."  About  450  miles  of  railroad  had  been  built  in  two 
years,  and  large  amounts  invested  in  cotton  factories  and  com- 
presses and  oil  mills. 

He  also  pointed  out  in  his  message  of  1884  that  the  laws  fav- 
ored the  maintenance  of  chain  gangs.  "The  enormity  of  the  wrong 
is  patent.    The   prisoner   is   required   to   pay   the   fine    and  costs 


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MISSISSIPPI  141 

within  24  hours  after  sentence,  notwithstanding  it  may  be  practi- 
cally impossible  to  estimate  the  costs  because  of  the  witnesses 
failure  to  prove  attendance  until  five  days  after  the  adjournment 
of  the  court."  There  were  various  pretexts  also,  for  holding  pris- 
oners in  the  gangs  after  they  had  served  their  time,  sometimes 
to  make  up  periods  of  sickness  caused  by  brutal  treatment.  The 
legislature  attempted  to  reform  the  system  by  an  act  of  1882. 
"A  fruitful  source  of  crime  is  the  too  prevalent  habit  of  carrying 
concealed  weapons."  He  recommended  that  the  use  of  deadly 
weapons  in  assault  should  be  declared  a  crime  not  admitting  ex- 
cuse or  justification. 

Notable  acts  of  legislature  in  1884  were  for  the  protection  of 
contracts  between  landlord  and  tenant;  providing  penalties  for 
persuading  an  employee  to  leave  an  employer  to  whom  he  was 
bound  by  written  contract,  also  penalties  for  the  employee  who 
violated  a  contract;  an  act  making  it  a  misdemeanor  for  officials 
of  the  State  to  accept  railroad  passes;  an  act  establishing  the  In- 
dustrial institute  for  white  girls,  and  the  Railroad  commission 
bill.     (q.  V.) 

This  legislature  invited  J.efferson  Davis  to  make  a  visit  to  Jack- 
son, which  he  did  in  March,  1884.  He  was  received  by  the  gover- 
nor and  the  supreme  court  in  presence  of  a  joint  session  of  the  legis- 
lature, and  made  a  brief  address  expressing  his  strong  attachment  to 
the  State  and  her  interests.  Several  changes  occurred  in  the  con- 
gressional representation  and  in  the  composition  of  the  supreme 
court,  which  are  treated  in  the  appropriate  articles.  In  1885  the 
East  Mississippi  Insane  Hospital  (q.  v.)  was  opened  at  Meridian. 
During  the  winter  of  1883-84,  attention  was  publicly  called  to  the 
evils  of  the  Convict  Lease  System,  and  an  agitation  began  which 
led  to  the  creation  of  the  Board  of  Control  (q.  v.).  In  the 
winter  of  1884-85  the  World's  Industrial  and  Cotton  Exposition 
was  held  at  New  Orleans,  with  Maj.  S.  A.  Jonas  as  state  commis- 
sioner. This  was  the  first  exposition  at  which  Mississippi  had 
been  adequately  represented. 

There  was  a  balance  in  the  Treasury  at  the  beginning  of  1884 
of  $168,989.  In  the  year  the  expenditures  were  $886,158,  which 
was  met  by  the  initial  balance.  $61,700  from  sale  of  5  per  cent, 
bonds,  and  $665,281  from  ordinary  sources,  of  which  $152,334  was 
licenses  and  forfeitures,  etc.,  belonging  to  the  school  fund,  and 
$56,915  was  railroad  tax.  Less  than  $275,000  was  from  the  State 
tax  levy.  Among  the  disbursements  were  $250,000  for  the  com- 
mon schools,  and  $65,295  for  Chickasaw  school  fund  interest.  The 
cash  balance  at  the  end  of  the  year  was  less  than  $10,000.  In  1885 
the  receipts  were  $902,142,  including  $81,000  from  bonds  sold;  and 
the  disbursements  $904,494.  The  indebtedness  of  the  State  was 
about  $1,000,000,  exclusive  of  Chickasaw  and  Seminary  Common 
school  funds.  The  State  tax  rate  was  increased  slightly  and  the 
sale  of  bonds  for  $500,000  authorized. 

G.  D.  Shands  was  lieutenant-governor  during  Lowry's  first  ad- 
ministration, and  the  department  officers  were  H.  C.  Myers,  sec- 


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142  MISSISSIPPI 

retary  of  state;  W.  L.  Hemingway,  treasurer;  Sylvester  Gwin, 
auditor;  T.  C.  Catchings,  attorney-general;  J.  A.  Smith,  superin- 
tendent of  education. 

Attorney-General  Catchings  was  elected  to  congress  in  1884  and 
resigned  in  February,  1885.  The  governor  appointed  T.  S.  Ford, 
of  Marion  county,  in  his  stead. 

At  the  election  in  1885  there  was  no  ticket  in  the  field  but  the 
Democratic.  Gov.  Lowry,  who  was  nominated,  received  almost 
the  entire  total  vote  of  about  90,000.  The  other  officers  elected, 
for  1886-90,  were:  G.  D.  Shands,  lieutenant-governor;  George  M. 
Govan,  secretary  of  state;  W.  L.  Hemingway,  state  treasurer; 
•W.  W.  Stone,  auditor;  T.  Marshall  Miller,  attorney-general;  J.  R. 
Preston,  superintendent  of  education. 

The  year  1886  was  memorable  for  the  adoption  of  an  effective 
law  relating  to  common  schools  (q.  v.),  and  the  local  option  law  (see 
Saloon  legislation). 

The  revenue  of  1886  was  $1,295,707,  of  which  $483,000  was  de- 
rived from  the  sa[le  of  bonds  and  8  per  cent,  certificates,  and  the 
disbursements  were  $1,039,678.  In  1887  the  total  revenue  was 
$1,069,568,  of  which  $215,783  was  derived  from  the  sale  of  bonds, 
and  the  disbursements  were  $1,023,098.  In  the  two  years  the  dis- 
bursements were  nearly  $400,000  more  than  the  receipts  from  reg- 
ular sources.  (Auditor's  statement.)  The  State  debt  had  increased 
to  $3,750,000  or  $1,345,000  more  than  what  the  treasury  owed  the 
trust  funds. 

In  his  message  of  1888  Governor  Lowry  said  that  signs  of  in- 
dividual and  general  prosperity  were  more  manifest  in  Mississippi 
than  at  any  time  of  the  decade.  He  discussed  vigorously  the  grow- 
ing debt  of  the  State,  the  gross  irregularities  of  the  revenue  laws, 
the  great  under-valuation  of  taxable  property,  the  non-collection 
of  poll  taxes,  and  the  abuses  of  the  judicial  system  in  regard  to 
payment  of  costs  in  criminal  cases  by  the  counties. 

In  the  summer  of  1889  it  was  generally  advertised  that  a  prize 
fight  by  two  individuals  distinguished  in  pugilism  would  occur 
in  Mississippi.  Sych  exhibitions  were  generally  prohibited  in  the 
States,  but  it  was  purposed  to  have  this  encounter  at  some  point 
in  Mississippi  to  be  reached  by  train  from  New  Orleans.  Gov. 
Lowry  issued  a  proclamation  directing  that  the  fight  should  not 
be  permitted,  and  stationed  State  troops  at  various  points  to  aid 
the  sheriffs.  But,  through  the  connivance  of  the  Northeastern 
railroad,  said  the  governor,  communication  between  the  governor 
and  sheriflF  of  Marion  county  was  prevented,  and  the  fight  was 
brought  oflF  in  that  county  in  July.  The  principals  were  arrested 
in  New  York  and  Maryland,  and  tried  in  the  circuit  courts,  from 
which  they  appealed  to  the  supreme  court.  The  governor  re- 
quested the  attorney-general  to  begin  proceedings  to  forfeit  the 
charter  of  the  Northeastern  railroad. 

John  M.  Stone  was  nominated  for  governor  at  the  Democratic 
convention  in  1889,  and  elected  in  November. 

There  was  a  balance  in  the  treasury  of  $276,980  at  the  beg^n- 


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MISSISSIPPI  143 

ning  of  1888,  the  receipts  were  $1,033,712,  and  the  expenditures 
were  $976,480,  leaving  a  balance  of  $334,211.  The  receipts  of  1889 
were  $1,151,055,  bringing  the  total,  including  balance,  up  to 
$1,485,266.  The  disbursements  of  1889  were  $929,816,  and  a  bal- 
ance of  $556,450,  was  reported. 

The  State  debt  at  the  close  of  Governor  Lowry's  administration 
was  $1,417,026,  exclusive  of  the  trust  funds  for  educational  pur- 
poses, which  swelled  the  aggregate  indebtedness  to  $3,837,490. 

In  1890  Governor  Lowry  had  been  "the  agent  of  the  people  in 
the  executive  department  of  the  State  government  for  eight  years, 
a  greater  length  of  time  than  had  been  served  by  any  of  his  pre- 
decessors since  the  admission  of  the  State  into  the  Union."  He 
congratulated  the  State  upon  the  favorable  outlook  of  affairs. 
There  had  been  a  great  increase  in  the  valuation  of  taxable  prop- 
erty; the  mileage  of  the  railroads  in  the  State  had  been  more  than 
doubled  since  1882  (1,078  to  2,366  miles)  ;  agriculture  was  gener- 
ally prosperous  and  rapid  progress  had  been  made  in  truck  farm- 
ing and  fruit  growing;  the  Mississippi  levees  were  better  than  ever 
before,  and  that  region  dwelt  in  security.  Banks  were  increasing 
in  number,  and  to  all  appearances  the  prosperity  was  solid  and 
enduring.  Since  1881  not  a  vote  had  been  cast  in  opposition  to 
the  State  ticket  of  the  Democratic  party,  and,  added  the  gover- 
nor, "the  intimation,  from  any  quarter,  of  invoking  improper 
methods  in  State  elections  is  a  slander  upon  the  fair  name  of  our 
Commonwealth,  for  there  has  been  no  opposition  to  the  party 
nominated  by  the  white  people,  who  pay  99  dollars  of  every  100 
required  for  the  support  and  maintenance  of  the  State  govern- 
ment." 

Loyal  League,  or  Union  League,  an  organization  of  negroes 
after  the  war  of  1861-65.  The  Union  League  was  originally  a 
secret  organization  in  the  North,  begun  in  1862,  to  support  the 
Union  and  oppose  the  efforts  of  the  "Coppertx,eads,"  and  Knights 
of  the  Golden  Circle.  The  organization  was  spread  southward 
among  the  Unionists  as  early  as  1863.  The  membership  was  at 
first  entirely  white,  and  included  some  old  Whigs,  as  well  as 
United  States  army  officers  and  ex-soldiers  of  the  Union  army 
who  settled  in  the  South.  The  Northern  league,  with  which  these 
Southern  white  leagues  were  affiliated,  was  active  in  support  of  the 
reconstruction  measures  and  disseminated  thousands  of  pamphlets, 
some  of  them  highly  partisan  and  exaggerated. 

In  1866  the  organization  of  negro  councils  began,  at  first  with 
the  color  line  sharply  drawn.  "Before  the  end  of  1867,  all  of  the 
negro  leaders  were  members  and  the  mass  of  the  black  population 
organized  in  'Union  Republican  clubs,'  for  political  control  and 
instruction.  The  admission  of  negroes  caused  most  of  the  native 
whites  to  desert  at  once.  Henceforth  the  order  consisted  of  a 
few  white  leaders  with  a  membership  of  blacks,  principally  local 
leaders,  though  every  negro  was  considered  an  ex  colore  member. 
In  every  negro  community  there  was  a  council  of  the  Union  league ; 
in  each  State  there  was  a  State  grand  council  with  headquarters 


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144  MISSISSIPPI 

at  the  State  capital,  and  the  national  grand  council  with  head- 
quarters in  New  York.  During  1867  and  1868  the  Loyal  Leagtie, 
as  it  was  popularly  called,  gave  to  the  negroes  an  organization 
and  a  training  that  made  it  possible  for  a  few  alien  leaders  to  con- 
trol them  and  to  vote  them  solidly  for  several  years  against  the 
native  whites.  .  .  .  The  dislike  of  the  whites  to  the  Union 
league  was  so  great  that  the  local  bodies  began  to  assume  other 
names :  .  .  .  Alcorn  clubs  in  Mississippi,  etc.  ...  By  1870 
the  organization  was  broken  up  in  the  South,  most  of  the  councils 
that  survived  becoming  simply  Republican  clubs.  The  discipline 
of  the  league  was  greatly  missed  after  1870  by  the  Radical  leaders 
in  the  South,  who,  without  its  aid,  could  no  longer  count  upon  the 
negro  majorities.  The  permanent  result  of  the  work  of  the  Union 
league  in  the  South  was  the  alienation  of  the  races;  this  alone 
made  it  possible  for  outsiders  to  control  the  negro  vote  and  draw 
the  color  line  in  politics."  (Walter  L.  Fleming,  Documents  Relat- 
ing to  Reconstruction.) 

The  local  lodges  were  called  councils.  "Lynch  council"  at  Jack- 
son was  one  of  the  most  important.  The  Freedmen's  bureau 
agents  aided  in  the  organization  among  the  negroes.  There  was 
a  great  increase  in  this  movement  after  the  congressional  recon- 
struction began.  As  the  negroes  could  not  read,  it  was  necessary 
to  collect  them  in  meetings  to  be  addressed  by  the  Bureau  agents 
even  for  legitimate  advice,  and  as  politics  began  to  be  worked  in 
with  this,  it  was  an  easy  step  to  the  organization  of  councils.  "One 
thing  about  the  league  that  attracted  the  negro  was  the  mysterious 
secrecy  of  the  meetings,  the  wierd  initiation  ceremony  that  made 
him  feel  fearfully  good  from  his  head  to  his  heels,  the  imposing 
ritual  and  songs.  The  ritual,  it  is  said,  was  not  used  in  the  North ; 
it  was  probably  adopted  for  the  particular  benefit  of  the  African." 
(Fleming.)  The  ceremony  consisted  mainly  in  introducing  the 
candidate  to  the  emblems  of  the  order:  the  altar,  the  Bible,  the 
declaration  of  independence,  the  constitution  of  the  United  States, 
the  flag  of  the  Union,  censer,  sword,  g^vel,  ballot-box,  sickle,  shut- 
tle, anvil  and  other  emblems  of  industry,  and  included  an  oath,  in 
a  darkened  room,  before  the  "fire  of  liberty,"  with  one  hand  on  the 
flag,  to  support  the  government,  elect  true  Union  men  to  office, 
and  "To  defend  and  perpetuate  freedom  and  union,  I  pledge  my 
life,  my  fortune  and  my  sacred  honor."  The  main  sig^  was  pro- 
nouncing, with  the  right  hand  in  corresponding  positions,  the  four 
words,  "Liberty,  Lincoln,  Loyal,  League."  The  councils  met  at 
night,  sometimes  with  the  members  armed,  and  when  in  session 
stationed  armed  guards.  The  negro  churches  and  schools  were 
commonly  used  as  meeting  places.  The  negroes  were  instructed, 
as  appears  from  publications  made  in  the  North  for  the  purpose 
of  instruction,  that  the  Democrats  would  take  awav  all  their 
rights,  and  if  possible  return  them  to  slavery.  "They  are  devoid 
of  principle,  and  destitute  of  all  sense  of  justice  where  the  colored 
man  is  concerned."  So  reads  a  catechism  published  by  the  order, 
in  which  it  was  also  asked  and  answered:     "Do  all  white  people 


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MISSISSIPPI  145 

belong  to  a  party  which  would  treat  us  in  that  way?  They  do 
not.  There  are  many  who  have  stood  up  nobly  for  your  rights, 
and  who  would  aid  you  to  the  end ;  indeed  all  the  Republicans  are 
such.  To  what  party  do  the  people  of  the  South  belong?  The 
larger  portion  belong  to  the  Democratic  party."  This  instruction 
was  pr^aratory  to  the  organization  of  a  Union  Republican  club.  It 
was  charged  that  the  leagues  or  clubs  were  the  scenes  of  incendiary 
advice  to  the  negroes,  and  in  some  regions  military  drill  was  carried 
on  at  night.  The  signs  of  the  league  were  used  to  influence  negro 
magistrates,  and  juries,  where  there  were  such.  There  was  much 
intimidation  and  persecution  of  neg^es  who  were  delinquent  in 
their  loyalty  to  these  organizations,  or  who  failed  to  vote  the  Re- 
publican ticket.  In  Lester  and  Wilson's  history  of  the  Ku  Klux 
Klan,  written  in  Tennessee,  it  was  said :  "It  is  a  part  of  the  history 
of  those  times  that  there  was  a  widespread  and  desperately  active 
organization  called  the  Loyal  League.  It  was  composed  of  the 
disorderly  element  of  the  negro  population  and  was  led  and  con- 
trolled by  white  men  of  the  basest  and  meanest  type  just  now  re- 
ferred to.  They  met  frequently,  went  armed  to  the  teeth,  and  lit- 
erally 'breathed  out  threatening  and  slaughter.'  They  not  only 
uttered,  but  in  many  instances  executed  the  most  violent  threats 
against  the  persons,  families  and  property  of  men,  whose  sole  crime 
was  that  they  had  been  in  the  Confederate  army." 

Layd,  a  post-hamlet  of  Calhoun  county,  7  miles  east  of  Pittsboro, 
the  county  seat,  and  15  miles  northwest  of  Houston.  Population 
in  1900,  56. 

Luc^s,  a  postoffice  in  Lawrence  county,  on  the  Mississippi  Central 
R.  R.,  10  miles  northeast  of  Monticello,  the  county  seat. 

Lucedale,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Greene  county, 
on  the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas  City  R.  R.,  41  miles  by  rail  north- 
west of  Mobile,  and  16  miles  south  of  Leakesville,  the  county  seat. 
Population  in  1900,  100. 

Lucem,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northwestern  part  of  Newton  county, 
8  miles  from  Decatur,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest  railroad  town. 
Population  in  1900,  40. 

Xucile,  a  post-hamlet  of  Lauderdale,  2  miles  north  of  Meridian. 
It  has  a  money  order  postoffice.    Population  in  1900,  100. 

Lucky,  a  postoffice  of  Jones  county. 

Lucre,  a  post-hamlet  of  Sharkey  county,  15  miles  southeast  of 
Rolling  Fork,  the  county  seat,  on  the  Sunflower  river.  Population 
in  1906,  25. 

Lucy,  a  postoffice  of  Leake  county,  10  miles  northwest  of  Car- 
thage, the  county  seat. 

Ludlow,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northwestern  part  of  Scott  county, 
situated  on  Coffee  Bogue,  a  tributary  of  Pearl  river,  about  20  miles 
from  'Forest,  the*county  seat.  Morton  is  its  nearest  banking  town. 
Population  in  1900,  100.  It  has  a  good  saw  and  grist  mill  combined, 
and  a  good  gin. 

Lula,  an  incorporated  post-town  in  the  northern  part  of  Coahoma 
county,  at  the  junction  of  two  branches  of  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi 

10-11 


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146  MISSISSIPPI 

Valley  R.  R.,  10  miles  northeast  of  Friar's  Point,  and  about  8  miles 
southeast  of  Helena,  Ark.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice.  Popu- 
lation in  1900,  174;  population  in  1906  estimated  at  250. 

Lriimberton,  an  incorporated  post-town  in  the  southern  part  of 
Lamar  county,  26  miles  southwest  of  Hattiesburg  and  10  miles 
southwest  of  Purvis,  the  county  seat.  The  Mendenhall-Maxie 
branch  of  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.  crosses  the  New  Orleans 
&  North  Eastern  R.  R.  at  this  point,  and  provides  it  with  excellent 
shipping  facilities.  It  is  a  thriving  town  and  growing  rapidly.  Its 
name  is  derived  from  its  chief  industry.  It  is  situated  in  the  heart 
of  the  long  leaf  pine  section  of  the  State,  and  large  lumbering 
operations  are  carried  on  in  the  vicinity.  It  is  also  extensively 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  naval  stored.  It  has  express,  tele- 
graph and  telephone  offices,  a  money  order  postoffice,  a  bank  and  a 
newspaper  office.  The  First  National  Bank  was  established  in  1900 
with  a  capital  of  $25,000 ;  the  capital  and  surplus  have  been  increased 
to  $100,000.  The  Head-Block  is  a  Democratic  weekly,  established 
in  1889,  T.  B.  Geiger,  editor  and  publisher.  Population  in  1900, 
1,609 ;  the  population  in  1906  was  estimated  at  3,000.  The  town  is 
supplied  with  an  excellent  electric  light  and  water  plant.  It  has 
many  fine  churches  and  a  splendid  system  of  schools. 

Luna,  Tristan  de.  In  1557  Phillip  II  confided  the  conquest  and 
settlement  of  Florida  to  Don  Louis  de  Velasco,  the  viceroy  of 
New  Spain,  and  two  years  later,  Velasco  dispatched  an  army  of 
1,500  soldiers  and  settlers  under  the  command  of  Don  Tristan  de 
Luna.  The  object  of  the  expedition  was  not  primarily  one  of  con- 
quest, but  rather  of  conciliation  and  settlement.  The  Indians  were 
to  be  well  treated  and  a  number  of  Dominican  friars  accompanied 
the  army.  The  expedition  arrived  at  the  Bay  of  Ichuse  (Santa 
Rosa  bay)  in  July,  1669.  Before  he  could  unload  his  vessels,  they 
were  struck  during  the  night  of  Sept.  19,  by  a  storm  which  lasted 
24  hours,  destroying  five  ships,  a  galleon  and  a  bark,  and  beaching 
one  caravel  and  its  cargo  high  and  dry  in  a  grove.  Many  of  the 
people  perished  and  most  of  the  stores  intended  for  the  colonists 
were  lost.  Left  thus  in  as  miserable  a  condition  as  any  ship- 
wrecked party  before,  De  Luna  was  not  disheartened  and  ad- 
vanced with  over  1,000  of  his  company  to  the  Indian  town  of 
Nanipacna,  on  the  Escambia,  which  had  been  taken  and  wasted 
by  De  Soto.  In  July  of  the  following  year,  a  detachment  of  the 
Spaniards  in  search  of  provisions  reached  Coca,  on  the  Coosa 
river,  an  Indian  town  of  thirty  houses,  near  which  were  seven  other 
towns  of  the  same  tribe.  In  order  to  gain  the  good  will  of  the 
Coosas,  they  agreed  to  aid  them  in  a  campaign  against  the  Napo- 
chies,  who  lay  on  the  Ochechiton,  or  great  water,  which  the  Span- 
iards took  to  be  the  sea.  These  were  in  all  probability  the  Natchez. 
The  Natchez  were  defeated  by  the  allies,  and  the  Spaniards  reached 
the  Ochechiton,  which  proved  to  be  a  mighty  river,  the  Rio  del 
Espiritu  Santo,  or  Mississippi,  thus  once  more  discovered  by  the 
Spanish  adventurers  and  missionaries.  Revolts  and  open  mutiny 
had  meanwhile  arisen  in  De  Luna's  camp,  and  though  he  was  re- 


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MISSISSIPPI  147 

luctant  to  abandon  the  projected  settlement,  the  desire  to  abandon 
the  country  where  all  had  suffered  so  severely  was  universal,  and 
Luna  seeing  himself  utterly  abandoned,  embarked  for  Havana 
with  a  few  servants.  Until  the  coming  of  the  French  under  Iber- 
ville, the  region  of  the  Mississippi  was  left  undisturbed. 

Lunch,  a  postoffice  of  Itawamba  county,  14  miles  north  of 
Fulton,  the  county  seat. 

Lurline,  a  postoffice  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Tate  county, 
situated  on  Bear  Tail  creek,  a  tributary  of  the  Coldwater  river,  9 
miles  northeast  of  Coldwater,  the  nearest  railroad  and  banking 
town.    It  has  a  general  store,  a  church  and  a  school. 

Luster^  a  postoffice  of  Chickasaw  county,  8  miles  northeast  of 
Houston,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest  railroad  town. 

Luther,  a  postoffice  of  Leake  county,  6  miles  north  of  Carthage, 
the  county  seat. 

Lux,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Covington  county, 
on  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,  about  17  miles  from  Williamsburg, 
the  county  seat.  Seminary  is  the  nearest  banking  town.  Popu- 
lation in  1900,  60. 

Luxembourg,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northern  part  of  Issaquena 
county,  situated  on  Lake  Lafayette,  6  miles  northeast  of  Mayers- 
ville,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  48. 

Lyman,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Harrison  county, 
on  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,  10  miles  north  of  Gulfport.  It  has 
a  money  order  postoffice,  an  express  office,  a  large  saw  mill,  and  a 
good  general  store.     It  has  a  population  of  about  150. 

Lyman  Colony.  The  Company  of  Military  Adventurers,  com- 
posed of  persons  principally  from  Connecticut,  under  a  mistaken 
expectation  of  obtaining  a  large  grant  from  the  British  crown, 
sent  agents  in  1773  to  West  Florida,  for  the  purpose  of  exploring 
the  country.  The  governor  of  that  province  promised  to  grant 
lands  to  such  as  should  become  settlers,  on  as  advantageous  terms 
as  he  was  authorized  to  do,  and  to  reserve  till  next  spring,  for  that 
purpose,  nineteen  townships,  which  had  been  selected  and  sur- 
veyed by  the  agents.  A  number  of  emigrants  from  Connecticut, 
accordingly  removed  to  the  Mississippi  in  1774 ;  the  war  prevented 
the  progress  of  the  settlements ;  and  one  hundred  and  forty  of  the 
settlers  left  the  country  in  1781,  when  the  Spanish  conquest  took 
place,  and  traversing  the  Choctaw  and  Cherokee  country,  reached 
the  inhabited  parts  of  Georgia.  "The  claim  which  is  now  set  up  in 
the  name  of  the  company  for  the  nineteen  townships  has  no  foun- 
dation. Such  of  the  settlers  as  had  obtained  grants,  or  have  con- 
tinued on  the  lands,  will  be  embraced  by  the  provisions  made  for 
other  claimants  of  a  similar  description."  (Report  of  Madison, 
Gallatin  and  Lincoln,  1803.) 

The  moving  spirit  in  this  scheme  of  colonization  was  Gen. 
Phineas  Lyman,  of  Suffield,  Conn.  Gen.  Lyman  was  born  in  Dur- 
ham, Conn.,  in  1715;  graduated  at  Yale  University,  subsequently 
practiced  law  in  his  native  State,  and  was  major-general  in  com- 
mand of  all  the  Connecticut  troops  during  the  French  and  Indian 


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148  MISSISSIPPI 

War.  In  1762,  he  was  sent  with  2,300  men  to  assist  in  the  capture 
of  Havana,  and  was  subsequently  placed  in  command  of  the  entire 
provincial  force  during  that  unlucky  expedition;  and  at  its  close, 
was  deputed  by  the  surviving  officers  to  go  to  England  and  re- 
ceive the  part  of  the  prize  money  that  remained  due.  He  had  been 
concerned  in  the  formation  of  the  "Company  of  Military  Adventur* 
ers"  chiefly  composed  of  those  who  had  served  in  the  late  wars, 
to  obtain  from  the  British  government  a  tract  of  land  on  the  Mis^ 
sissippi  and  Yazoo  rivers.  Unfortunately,  soon  after  his  arrival 
in  England,  a  change  of  ministry  took  place  and  so  many  obstacles 
intervened  that  he  remained  in  England  until  1772,  unwilling  to 
return  and  admit  failure.  He  was  at  last  induced  to  return  by  his 
son,  the  wreck  of  his  former  self,  but  not  until  an  order  had  been 
passed  by  the  king  in  council,  authorizing  the  governor  of  West 
Florida  to  grant  lands  in  that  province  to  the  Provincial  officers 
and  soldiers,  in  the  same  manner  and  proportion  as  given  to  his 
majesty's  regular  troops,  viz:  To  a  field  officer,  5,000  acres;  to  a 
captain,  2,000  acres;  to  a  subaltern  or  staff  officer,  2,000  acres;  to 
a  non-commissioned  officer,  200  acres;  and  to  a  private  man,  50 
acres.  Unfortunately,  General  Lyman  brought  no  written  docu- 
ment to  substantiate  the  grant,  but  at  a  meeting  of  the  Company 
held  in  Hartford,  Conn.,  in  1772,  his  word  was  so  far  credited  that 
the  meeting  resolved  to  explore  the  lands,  and  appointed  a  com- 
mittee consisting  of  Rufus  Putnam,  Capt.  Enos,  Thaddeus  Lyman, 
and  Col.  Israel  Putnam,  accompanied  by  Daniel  Putnam,  a  son  of 
the  Colonel,  and  a  hired  man,  for  that  purpose.  On  their  way  to  the 
Mississippi,  they  interviewed  Gov.  Chester  and  his  council,  but 
were  informed  that  no  order  for  granting  lands  to  the  Provincials 
had  yet  arrived.  However,  in  the  hope  that  it  might  yet  arrive, 
and  it  being  proposed  to  grant  lands  to  the  company  on  terms  al- 
ready within  the  governor's  power,  they  decided  to  proceed  and 
make  surveys.  Rufus  Putnam,  in  later  years  the  pioneer  of  Ohio, 
was  commissioned  by  Gov.  Chester,  as  a  deputy  surveyor  of  the 
province  of  West  Florida.  In  the  course  of  their  explorations 
they  ascended  the  Yazoo  river  some  nine  miles,  but  were  later  in- 
formed by  Capt.  George,  a  Chickasaw  chief,  that  at  a  congress  of 
his  people,  it  had  been  decided  that  no  whites  should  settle  on  the 
Yazoo,  but  that  they  might  do  so  on  the  Big  Black,  but  not  higher 
up  on  the  Mississippi.  They  made  a  survey  of  lands  on  the  Big 
Black,  and  ascended  it  some  25  miles  by  boat,  to  a  rocky  rapid, 
which  was  deemed  an  excellent  mill  seat.  They  found  here  plentv 
of  fine  rich  land  on  the  left  bank  of  the  river,  hilly,  but  watered  with 
several  springs. 

Thos.  Hutchins,  in  his  Narrative  of  Louisiana  and  West  Florida, 
published  in  1784,  speaking  of  the  Lyman  Colony,  says:  "At  six 
miles  further  the  high  lands  are  near  the  river  on  both  sides,  and 
continue  for  two  or  three  miles,  but  broken  and  full  of  springs. 
This  land  on  the  left  was  chosen  by  Gen.  Putnam,  Captain  Enos, 
Mr.  Lyman  and  other  New  England  adventuters.  as  a  proper  place 
for  a  town;  and  by  order  of  the  governor  and  council  of  West 


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MISSISSIPPI  U9 

Florida  in  1773,  it  was  reserved  for  the  capitol.  The  country 
around  is  very  fit  for  settlements/' 

In  his  description  of  the  regions  explored  on  the  left  bank  of  the 
Mississippi  from  the  Yazoo  to  Manchac,  Mr.  Putnam  states  that 
he  saw  but  a  few  small  streams  of  water,  and  none  suitable  for 
mills;  that  the  only  mill-seat  he  saw  or  heard  of  was  on  the  Big 
Black.  As  a  result  of  this  exploration,  says  Mr.  Putnam,  "So 
favorable  was  the  report  of  the  committee,  as  to  the  quality  of  the 
land,  climate,  etc.,  and  moderate  terms  on  which  the  governor  and 
council  had  engaged  to  grant  them,  that  at  a  meeting  of  the  mil- 
itary land  company  in  the  fall  of  1773,  at  Hartford,  they  resolved 
to  prosecute  the  settlement;  and  during  that  autumn,  winter,  and 
spring  following,  several  hundred  families  embarked  from  Massar 
chusetts,  Connecticut,  and  other  places,  for  the  purpose  of  settling 
on  the  lands  we  had  explored.  But  they  were  sadly  disappointed. 
On  the  6th  of  October  of  that  year,  Gov.  Chester  received  an  order 
from  the  king  in  council,  prohibiting  him  from  granting  any  more 
lands,  either  on  family  rights,  or  on  purchase,  until  the  king's 
pleasure  be  further  signified  to  him.  Thus  the  land  office  was  shut 
before  the  emigrants  arrived,  and  indeed  I  believe  before  any  of 
them  sailed,  and  never  opened  afterwards."  While  the  Provincials 
were  much  disappointed,  they  were  permitted  to  occupy  any  vacant 
lands  they  could  find.  Says  Hildreth,  "the  emigrants  of  1774  ar- 
rived generally  so  late  in  the  season,  that  many  of  them  sickened 
and  died  in  this  new  climate,  and  the  war  which  soon  followed, 
put  a  stop  to  any  further  attempts  to  prosecute  the  settlement." 

In  the  instructions  to  Mr.  Putnam  as  deputy  surveyor,  the  sur- 
veyor-general of  West  Florida,  Elias  Dunford,  required  notices 
of  important  places  on  the  river  for  landings,  wharves,  towns, 
etc.  The  townships  were  in  no  case  to  exceed  in  width  one-third 
of  their  length,  in  order  not  to  occupy  too  much  space  on  the  river 
bank.  The  whole  grant  from  Gov.  Chester  embraced  nineteen  of 
these  townships,  intended  to  contain  about  20,000  acres  each,  mak- 
ing the  whole  grant  amount  to  380,000  acres.  The  cost  to  the 
company  was  simply  the  fees  of  the  officers  of  the  government, 
amounting  to  five  pounds  sterling,  or  $18.20  for  every  thousand 
acres. 

One  member  of  the  company,  Capt.  Michael  Martyn,  settled  45 
miles  up  the  river  Amite,  in  August,  1774.  He  wrote  that  his  fam- 
ily had  been  sick,  but  he  was  pleased  with  the  country. 

General  Lyman,  accompanied  by  his  eldest  son  and  a  number  of 
the  other  members  of  the  company,  and  their  families  moved  on 
to  the  Big  Black  river  in  the  surveyed  territory  in  1774.  It  was 
his  intention  to  get  his  plantation  in  shape  for,  the  reception  of  his 
family,  who  were  to  follow  him  later.  However,  when  Mrs.  Lymatt 
and  five  more  of  his  children  arrived  in  1776,  she  found  both  hus- 
band and  son  dead.    She  did  not  long  survive  him  and  died  in  1777. 

Captain  Matthew  Phelps  in  his  "Memoirs"  states  that  the  fol- 
lowing were  fellow  voyagers  on  his  two  trips  to  the  Mississippi 
country:     In    1773 — "Thaddeus   and   Phineas   Lyman   with   eight 


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150  MISSISSIPPI 

slaves,  these  were  from  Suffield,  as  were  likewise  Moses  and  Isaac 
Sheldon,  Roger  Harmon,  and  one  Hancks ;  Seth  Miller,  and  Elisha 
and  Joseph  Flowers  of  Springfield ;  Moses  Drake,  Ruggles  Winchel, 
and  Benjamin  Barber  of  Westfield;  Mr.  Wolcott,  from  Winsor; 
Daniel  and  Roswell  Magguet  of  Hartford ;  Thomas  Comstock  and 
Mr.  Weed  of  New  Hartford;  Capt.  Silas  Crane,  Robert  Patrick, 
Ashbel  Bowen,  John  Newcomb,  and  James  Dean  of  Lebanon ; 
Abraham  Knap  of  Norfolk ;  Giles,  Nathaniel  Hull,  James  Stoddert, 
and  Thaddeus  Bradley  of  Salisbury;  Ephraim  Case  and  Hezekiah 
Reu  from  Sheffield;  John  Fisk  and  Elisha  Hale  of  Walling^ord; 
Timothy  Hotchkiss  and  David  Hotchkiss  of  Waterbury;  John 
Hyde,  William  Silkrag,  Jonathan  Lyon,  and  William  Davis  of 
Strafford  or  Derby.  We  sailed  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  in  company 
with  a  vessel  from  Connecticut,  commanded  by  Captain  West 
Goodrich  of  Durham,  on  board  of  which  were  Capt.  Ladley  of 
Hartford,  since  dead;  General  Lyman  of  Suffield,  dead;  Hugh 
White  from  Middletown;  Thomas  and  James  Lyman;  Capt.  Els- 
worth,  Ira  Whitmore,  and Sage,  from  Middletown  and  Major 

Early  of  Weathersfield.  In  a  vessel  that  followed  us  the  October 
following  my  sailing  on  my  first  voyage,  there  went  to  the  same 
place  James  Harmon  and  family,  and  Elnathan  Smith,  of  Suffield, 
William  Hurlburt  and  Elijah  Leonard,  of  Springfield,  with  a  num- 
ber of  slaves.  On  my  second  voyage  I  sailed  in  a  vessel  com- 
manded by  Capt.  Eggleston,  with  whom  went  passengers  Major 
Timothy  Dwight  with  a  wife  and  one  child;  Sereno  and  Jonathan 
Dwight  of  Northampton;  Benjamin  Day,  and  family;  Harry 
Dwight  and  three  slaves;  Joseph  Leonard  and  Josiah  Flowers, 
witoh  their  families,  from  Springfield ;  Rev.  Mr.  Smith  and  family, 
from  Granville,  Mass.;  the  wife  of  Elnathan  Smith,  and  family, 
who  on  her  arrival  found  her  husband  was  dead;  Madam  Lyman 
with  three  sons  and  two  daughters,  children  of  General  Lyman, 
whom  with  one  son  she  found  dead  on  her  arrival,  the  knowledge 
of  whose  death  she  survived  but  a  few  days;  and  John  Felt  and 
family,  from  Suffield.  There  are  several  others  who  accompanied 
me  in  my  two  voyages,  whose  memories  I  shall  ever  respect,  al- 
though their  names  have  escaped  my  recollection." 

In  the  "History  of  the  Mississippi  Valley"  by  Spears  and  Clark 
(1903)  it  is  stated  "In  1773  General  Lyman,  of  Connecticut,  and 
some  military  friends,  laid  out  several  additions  to  the  old  French 
settlement  at  Natchez,  and  to  that  point  no  less  than  400  families 
emigrated  during  the  year  named,  passing  down  the  Ohio  in  flat 
boats,  while  an  unrecorded  host  travelled  by  way  of  Boatyard, 
Sullivan  county,  Tenn."  Among  the  old  land  grants  of  this  period, 
which  can  still  be  found  among  the  files  of  the  land  office  for  the 
Natchez  District,  is  one  of  20,000  acres,  on  Bayou  Pierre  to  Thad- 
deus Lyman,  dated  October  27,  1772. 

The  colonists  erected  a  mill  at  the  falls  on  the  Big  Black  and 
planned  to  ship  lumber  to  New  Orleans.  This  prospect  was 
blasted,  however,  by  the  Spanish  prohibition  of  that  trade  soon 
after. 


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MISSISSIPPI  151 

In  the  year  1802,  the  survivors  of  the  colony,  about  one  hundred 
in  number,  reorganized  themselves,  and  petitioned  congress  for  a 
confirmation  of  their  old  grants,  but  it  does  not  appear  that  any- 
thing was  done  for  them.  Thus  ended  this  famous  land  venture, 
which*  caused  a  good  deal  of  excitement  in  New  England  at  the 
time. 

Lynch,  Charles,  came  to  Mississippi  from  South  Carolina,  and 
was  a  resident  of  Monticello.  "His  retired  country  life,  domestic 
habits,  agricultural  pursuits  and  associations  among  the  laboring 
portion  of  the  community,  were  admirably  well  calculated  to  enable 
him  to  prepare  his  highly  cultivated  mind  for  future  usefulness." 
In  1822,  the  legislature  conferred  upon  him  the  appointment  of 
judge  of  probate  of  Lawrence  county.  He  accepted  it  reluctantly, 
for  he  was  not  a  lawyer.  In  1824  he  was  elected  to  the  State 
senate,  where  he  served  in  1825-27.  In  August,  1827  he  was  re- 
elected for  the  district  of  Simpson  and  Lawrence.  He  was  selected 
as  the  leader  of  the  Jacksonian  Democracy  in  the  senate,  and  was 
the  author  of  the  resolution  of  1828,  remonstrating  against  the 
United  States  bank,  and  the  introduction  of  a  branch  in  Missis- 
sippi. In  January,  1829,  he  was  a  candidate  for  the  United  States 
senate,  supported  by  Plummer  and  others.  But,  as  it  is  stated  in 
a  campaign  biography  of  Lynch,  "the  Aristocratic,  Federal  and 
Bank  party  triumphed  in  the  election  of  Hon.  Thomas  B.  Reed." 
Being  again  elected  to  the  senate  in  1830  Lynch  opposed  the  intro- 
duction of  a  branch  of  the  bank,  but  in  this  he  was  overruled  by 
the  majority.  After  the  adoption  of  the  new  constitution  he  wa^ 
again  elected  to  the  senate,  and  chosen  president  of  that  body  in 
January,  1833.  Upon  the  death  of  Gov.  Scott,  June  12,  1833,  he 
became  acting  governor  of  the  State,  and  so  continued  until  Gov. 
Runnells  was  inaugurated  in  November.  In  his  annual  message  to 
the  legislature,  that  met  in  the  latter  month,  he  took  a  bold  stand 
against  the  course  of  the  Calhoun  party  in  South  Carolina.  "Be- 
wildered," said  he,  "in  the  mazes  of  theory,  they  glided  with  as- 
tonishing facility  over  facts  that  are  destructive  of  the  conclusions 
to  which  they  arrive,  and  become  the  ready  victims  of  passion 
and  continued  prejudice.  The  prompt  action  of  the  chief  magis- 
trate, and  the  expression  of  an  overwhelming  majority  of  the 
American  people,  have  met  and  denounced  the  doctrine  of  nulli- 
fication in  a  voice  so  decided  as  to  blast  the  hopes  of  the  enemy 
of  free  governments ;  and  affords  to  us  and  to  the  world  the  highest 
evidence  of  the  intelligence,  virtue  and  fidelity  of  the  people,  with 
the  cheering  assurance  that  our  union  and  liberty  shall  live  for- 
ever." He  urgently  recommended  the  establishment  of  primary 
schools  in  every  neighborhood.  He  was  also  a  firm  friend  of 
internal  improvements.  In  1829  he  was  a  member  of  the  State 
board  and  made  a  report  recommending  the  opening  of  various 
rivers  to  navigation.  It  was  claimed  by  his  friends  that  he  deserved 
the  title  of  father  of  the  system  of  internal  improvement.  But  his 
plan,  for  the  building  of  three  railroads,  through  the  State,  con- 
necting the   most   important   points,   was   neglected   in   favor  of 


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152  MISSISSIPPI 

various  schemes  for  the  benefit  of  speculators  in  which  vast  sums 
of  money,  drawn  from  the  people,  were  squandered. 

In  the  famous  campaigfn  of  1835  he  came  out  for  governor  in  op- 
position to  the  caucus  nominee  of  the  Democratic  party,  Hiram 
G.  Runnells,  and  was  supported  by  those  who  favored  the  reelec- 
tion of  Senator  Poindexter;  while  the  supporters  of  Runnels  fav- 
ored the  election  of  Robert  J.  Walker.  It  appears  that  the  friend- 
ship of  Lynch  for  Jackson,  and  his  'opposition  to  nullification, 
were  expected  to  counteract  the  record  of  Poindexter.  In  this 
combination  David  Dickson  and  James  C.  Wilkins  were  the  can- 
didates for  congress,  and  Silas  Brown  was  named  for  secretary 
of  state,  John  P.  Gilbert  for  auditor,  and  C.  C.  Mayson  for  treas- 
urer. The  Walker-Runnels  ticket  was  J.  F.  H.  Claiborne  and  B. 
W.  Edwards  for  congress,  B.  W.  Benson  for  secretary  of  state, 
J.  H.  Mallory  for  auditor,  Upton  Miller  for  treasurer. 

The  opposition  called  Lynch  "the  White,  alias  VanBuren,  alias 
Jackson,  alias  anti-Jackson,  alias  anything  candidate."  He  had 
the  support  of  the  United  States  bank,  the  State  banks,  and  the 
enemies  of  both,  and  was  elected  governor  by  a  majority  of  426. 
Edwards  and  Claiborne  were  chosen  for  congress;  Benson,  Mal- 
lory and  Mason  for  the  other  offices,  and  an  anti-Poindexter  leg- 
islature. Gov.  Lynch  was  inaugurated  in  January,  1836.  In  his 
inaugural  address,  read  by  the  great  Whig  leader  of  Mississippi, 
Adam  L.  Bingaman,  there  was  this  appropriate  passage: 

"But,  gentlemen,  there  are  occasional  intervals  in  this  bustle 
and  vicissitude  of  human  affairs,  that  fall  upon  the  spirits  like  an 
evening's  calm,  and  prompt  us  to  still  and  control  the  turbulence  of 
thought,  which  the  day  may  have  brought  forth ;  soberly  to  review 
our  past  conduct,  and  to  ponder  well  on  the  future.  Under  such 
profound  impressions,  the  mind  is  brought  to  pause ;  by  reflection 
it  is  chastened,  and  we  rise  from  our  meditations  with  our  hearts 
softened  if  not  subdued;  feeling  in  the  approaching  desolation  of 
nature  alike  the  littleness  of  our  angry  passions  and  the  disposition 
to  merge  them  in  the  more  charitable  and  lofty  feelings  engendered 
by  that  kindred  evening  which  must  soon  close  upon  us  all." 

The  vexed  question  of  State  sovereignty  had  been  elaborately 
discussed  in  the  message  of  his  immediate  predecessor,  Acting- 
Governor  Quitman,  who  held  the  theory  of  a  sort  of  divine,  "sa- 
cred and  intangible"  State,  in  which  was  perpetuated  the  "sover- 
eignty" of  ancient  government.  Governor  Lynch  said:  "Our 
government  was  the  first  and  as  yet  is  the  only  one,  fairly  and 
fully  bottomed  on  the  sovereignty  of  the  people.  ...  As  a 
nation  we  have  experienced  a  degree  of  prosperity  and  happiness 
far  beyond  the  enjoyment  of  any  other  government,  nor  is  there 
a  people  on  earth  upon  whom  the  preservation  of  liberty  and  the 
universal  welfare,  impose  such  dread  obligations.  The  eyes  of  the 
friends  of  liberty  from  every  quarter  of  the  globe  are  turned  upon 
us  with  intense  interest." 

After  the  close  of  his  service  as  governor  Mr.  Lynch  was  en- 
trusted, as  sole  commissioner,  with  the  completion  of  the  State 


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MISSISSIPPI  153 

house,  and  governor's  mansion,  which  still  stand,  and  the  peniten- 
tiary, which  has  given  way  to  the  present  Capitol.  He  was  also 
burdened  with  the  presidency  of  the  Alabama  &  Mississippi  rail- 
road and  banking  company,  which  had  been  expected  to  build  a 
railroad  from  Jackson  east,  but  was  then  in  a  state  of  collapse. 

A  legislative  committee  on  public  buildings  reported  in  1840: 
"The  State  was  fortunate  in  procuring  the  services  of  a  gentle- 
man so  well  qualified,  and  who  devoted  his  unremitting  attention 
to  the  duties  of  his  office.  .  .  .  Your  committee  cannot  with- 
hold from  him  that  praise  that  is  due  to  a  public  officer  who  has 
discharged  his  duty  with  marked  industry,  integrity  and  skill." 

In  the  later  years  of  his  life  Gov.  Lynch  resided  at  a  plantation 
home  near  Jackson.    He  died  February  9,  1853,  aged  70  years. 

Lynch's  Administration.  The  legislature  provided  an  elaborate 
ceremonial  for  the  inaugfuration  of  Governor  Lynch,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  both  houses,  the  judges,  and  other  distingfuished  individu- 
als invited.  The  oath  was  to  be  administered  by  Chief  Justice 
Sharkey,  the  governor  escorted  by  Joseph  A.  McCraven,  sergeant- 
at-arms  for  the  occasion.  "The  sergeant-at-arms  will  then  pro- 
claim at  the  door  of  the  capitol  that  Charles  Lynch  is  installed 
governor  and  commander-in-chief  of  the  army,  navy  and  militia 
of  the  State  of  Mississippi."  So  it  was  performed  Jan.  7,  1836. 
The  officers  serving  with  him  were  B.  W.  Benson,  secretary  of 
state;  James  Phillips,  treasurer;  James  H.  Mallory,  auditor.  M. 
D.  Patton  was  attorney-general  until  1837,  succeeded  by  T.  F. 
Collins.  ' 

John  A.  Quitman,  acting  governor,  said  in  his  message  to  the 
legislature,  that  the  public  treasury  was  in  a  flourishing  condition. 
"The  revenue  of  the  State  is  rapidly  increasing  beyond  the  amount 
required  for  the  necessary  expenses  of  the  government."  But  the 
revenue  and  the  financial  resources  of  the  State  government,  as 
well  as  the  current  money  of  the  people,  was  mainly  in  notes  of  the 
Planters  and  other  banks,  and  the  resources  of  the  banks,  to  make 
the  notes  good,  were  either  money  borrowed  on  State  bonds  or  the 
notes  and  mortgages  of  planters  payable  in  the  notes  of  the  banks. 
There  was  great  activity  in  the  sale  of  lands  opened  up  by  the 
Choctaw  and  Chickasaw  treaties — in  large  degree  a  reckless  scram- 
ble by  corrupt  and  unscrupulous  speculators.  There  was  a  prev- 
alent disregard  of  those  principles  of  faith  and  honor  that  make 
society  possible.  The  year  1836  is  described  in  the  State  histories 
as  "the  most  prosperous  year  in  the  State's  history."  Yet  Auditor 
Mallory  reported  that  it  was  impossible  to  collect  many  of  the 
notes  g^ven  by  purchasers  of  seminary  lands.  "The  payment  of  the 
whole  of  the  notes  is  secured  by  the  most  responsible  sureties, 
yet  many  of  the  notes  have  not  been  paid.  Believing  that  the 
defalcation  of  the  purchasers  has  been  caused  by  the  late  fall  of 
the  price  of  cotton,  I  would  respectfully  recommend  that  the  leg- 
islature extend  to  them  an  indulgence  of  another  year."  The 
"prosperity"  was  mainly  fictitious  or  speculative.  Public  leaders 
had  blindly  fed  the  fever  with  the  extravagant  issue  of  State  bonds, 


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164  MISSISSIPPI 

and  the  spirit  of  speculation  was  so  pervasive  of  two  continents 
that  these  bonds  could  be  sold  at  a  premium  in  New  York  and 
London.  The  bursting  of  the  bubble  was  now  close  at  hand.  At 
the  same  time  the  State  was  agitated  by  the  Texas  revolution, 
(q.  V.) 

The  legislature  of  1836  provided  for  the  erection  of  ten  new 
counties  in  the  Chickasaw  lands,  and  three  more  were  set  apart 
from  the  original  counties  of  the  Choctaw  region.  The  building 
of  a  penitentiary  was  provided  for  and  further  appropriation  made 
for  the  state  house.  George  Poindexter  was  defeated  in  his  am- 
bition for  reelection  as  senator,  by  Robert  J.  Walker. 

The  presidential  election  of  1836  was  closely  contested  by  the 
Democrats,  whose  candidate  was  VanBuren,  and  the  Whigs,  who 
voted  for  Hugh  L.  White,  of  Tennessee.  VanBuren  carried  the 
State  by  300  majority.  The  electors  were  Hiram  G.  Runnels, 
Thomas  Hinds,  P.  R.  R.  Pray  and  Reuben  R.  Grant. 

When  the  legislature  of  January,  1837,  met,  the  trouble  about 
the  representation  of  new  counties,  which  came  up  in  Runnels' 
administration,  was  renewed.  Gov.  Lynch  refused  to  issue  writs 
of  election  to  these  counties  in  1836,  for  the  election  of  representa- 
tives. But  the  "boards  of  police,"  as  the  county  boards  were 
called,  called  elections,  and  representatives,  from  the  new  counties 
presented  themselves  at  the  extra  session  of  January,  1837,  to 
which  date  the  legislature  had  adjourned  in  1836,  although  the 
constitution  contemplated  biennial  sessions.  In  his  message  the 
governor  advised  the  legislature  to  transact  only  such  business  as 
was  urgent,  and  provide  for  a  new  apportionment  in  time  for  the 
election  in  November  following. 

The  legislature  did  not  do  this.  The  house  admitted  the  claim- 
ants to  seats.  No  new  apportionment  was  made.  Instead,  an  act 
of  the  most  disastrous  character  was  passed,  incorporating  the 
Union  bank,  also  an  act  incorporating  a  company  to  build  the 
proposed  Nashville  and  New  Orleans  railroad,  west  of  Pearl 
river,  called  the  "Boa  Constrictor,"  and  bitterly  opposed  by 
Natchez.  In  the  house  Adam  L.  Bingaman  favored  the  admission 
of  the  new  members  and  Prentiss  opposed  it  in  a  great  speech, 
to  which  Bingaman  replied.  In  the  senate  George  Winchester  led 
in  the  opposition.  Winchester  and  five  other  senators,  and  nine- 
teen representatives  led  by  Prentiss  issued  an  address  to  the  peo- 
ple, declaring  that  the  seating  of  the  representatives  was  an  act 
of  revolution  and  anarchy,  and  contempt  of  the  constitution.  A 
protest  was  also  spread  on  the  journal  of  the  house,  asserting  that 
the  proceeding  had  disorganized  the  house  and  made  its  acts  of 
no  legal  authority.    The  legislature  adjourned  January  21. 

The  people  were  already  experiencing  what  was  called  a  cur- 
tailment of  currency.  In  other  words,  the  fantastic  operations  of 
speculators  were  becoming  visible  in  a  true  light,  and  men  who 
had  money  were  refusing  to  lend  it  for  such  purposes.  The  United 
States  government  had  instructed  the  land  offices  to  demand  coin 
in  payment  for  lands.     Gov.  Lynch  was  disposed  to  blame  all  the 


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MISSISSIPPI  155 

approaching  troubles  upon  this  executive  act.  But  the  whole 
policy  of  Andrew  Jackson,  in  his  bank  fight,  leading  up  to  the 
present  situation,  had  been  toward  a  return  to  specie  payments, — 
"hard  money."  The  governor  argued  that  the  great  issue  of  paper 
money  by  the  banks,  added  to  the  specie,  had  caused  a  decrease 
of  value  of  both  paper  and  specie,  as  compared  with  commodities, 
and  tended  to  the  rapid  increase  of  prosperity  and  wealth.  The 
confusion  of  money  and  credit  in  his  mind  was  the  same  as  has 
appeared  in  later  years.  Consequently  he  could  give  no  advice 
of  value  in  the  presence  of  danger,  and,  with  some  little  hesitation, 
he  advised  the  incorporation  of  the  Union  bank,  involving  an  enor- 
mous increase  in  the  debt  of  the  State,  and  suggested  the  sale  of 
the  bonds  in  Europe,  because  New  York  capitalists  were  becoming 
cautious. 

The  crisis  arrived  in  March,  1837,  and  on  the  31st,  Gov.  Lynch 
summoned  a  special  session  of  the  legislature  to  meet  April  7, 
1837.  His  reasons  were,  "Whereas,  I  have  received  information 
within  the  last  few  days,  from  various  parts  of  the  State,  indicating 
in  a  serious  point  of  view  the  pecuniary  embarrassment  of  the 
community,  growing  out  of  the  unparalleled  pressure  of  the  times, 
which  precludes  the  usual  moneyed  facilities.  And,  whereas,  a 
combination  of  circumstances  calls  for  and  renders  necessary  the 
convocation  of  the  legislature,  with  a  view  of  averting  as  far  as 
may  be  by  the  suitable  and  speedy  action  of  that  body,  the  im- 
pending ruin  that  seems  to  threaten  a  large  portion  of  our  citi- 
zens." 

Gen.  M.  Hunt,  "minister  plenipotentiary  and  envoy  extraordi- 
nary from  the  republic  of  Texas"  to  the  United  States,  and  the 
presidents  of  the  banks  of  the  State  were  invited  to  seats  within 
the  bar  of  the  house.  John  L.  Irwin,  speaker,  having  resigned, 
Mr.  Vannerson  was  elected  on  the  19th  ballot,  aher  16  ballots  had 
failed  to  elect  Mr.  Brown,  or  Mr.  King.  Bills  were  introduced 
asking  the  "United  States  bank"  of  Pennsylvania  to  establish  a 
branch  in  Mississippi,  also  various  propositions  to  relieve  debtors 
or  hardship.  The  governor  had  called  the  bankers  of  the  State  to 
the  capital  to  consult  with  the  legislature.  In  his  message  he 
suggested  the  issue  of  post  notes,  running  13  months,  to  relieve 
the  banks,  the  notes  to  be  accepted  by  the  State  treasury  as  money. 
The  governor  did  not  credit  the  objection  that  such  notes  would 
immediately  sink  below  par  and  do  more  harm  than  good.  He 
laid  the  blame  of  the  situation  upon  the  interstate  slave  trade, 
the  drain  of  wealth  to  New  Orleans,  and  too  much  paper  money. 

The  State  had  been  "under  the  grinding,  withering  and  bitter 
effects"  of  high  rates  of  interest,  and  the  almost  entire  dependence, 
in  order  to  raise  money  on  any  terms,  upon  bills  drawn  on  the 
commission  houses  of  New  Orleans.  The  late  extensive  failures 
cut  off  the  supply  of  this  sort  of  credit,  and  the  State  was  thrown 
upon  its  own  resources,  when  it  was  discovered  that  the  Missis- 
sippi banks  were  creditors  of  the  same  houses.  The  banks  were 
compelled  to  suddenly  restrict  their  credit  to  planters  and  call  in 


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156  MISSISSIPPI 

loans.  "We  are  fully  competent  to  manage  all  our  commercial 
operations  within  our  own  borders;  and  so  long  as  we  consent  to 
be  tributary  to  a  large,  monopolizing  and  in  some  respects  a  for- 
eign emporium,  we  may  expect  to  experience  the  disasters  with 
which  we  are  at  present  visited." 

One  committee  reported  that  if  there  were  no  change  "the  proud, 
chivalrous  freemen"  of  Mississippi  must  become  "the  vassals  of 
New  Orleans." 

But  there  was  suspicion  that  the  governor's  anxiety  was  over 
active  in  behalf  of  the  banks.  A  committee  waited  upon  him  to 
ask  for  the  "memorials  and  petitions"  he  had  alluded  to  in  his 
message  as  a  cause  for  calling  a  special  session.  He  refused  to 
submit  to  such  an  invasion  of  his  prerogative,  and  hoped  if  he  had 
misconceived  the  true  state  of  affairs  the  legislature  would  prevent 
any  harm  coming  from  the  extra  session.  Subsequently  the  house 
resolved  that  while  there  was  some  difference  of  opinion  on  the 
subject,  all  united  in  the  opinion  that  his  excellency  was  actuated 
by  none  other  than  motives  of  the  most  exalted  character,  and  the 
kind,  sympathetic  and  generous  feelings  that  prompted  him  were 
duly  commended. 

Among  the  other  evils  of  the  time,  the  law  permitted  the  court 
officers  to  tax  the  full  amount  of  costs  in  collection  cases  against 
each  surety  severally,  and  the  officials  continued  to  reap  a  rich 
harvest,  until  the  law  was  reformed.  Felix  H.  Walker  proposed 
that  the  State  issue  twenty  million  in  treasury  notes,  to  be  loaned 
on  real  estate.  When  an  act  of  legislature  was  proposed  author- 
izing the  State  treasurer  to  receive  a  deposit  of  the  surplus  money 
of  the  United  States  treasury,  Mr.  Walker  protested,  on  the  ground 
that  the  surplus  had  been  acquired  by  constitutional  means — the 
protective  tariff.  The  deposit  was  received,  however.  (See  Mc- 
Nutt's  Administration.) 

James  Phillips'  reported  a  resolution  asking  for  a  branch  of  the 
"United  States  bank"  of  Pennsylvania,  as  the  speediest  way  to 
obtain  a  circulating  medium  "equal  to  gold  and  silver."  Phillips 
said  "The  main  and  most  certain  relief  of  our  country  rests  upon 
the  resources  of  the  agricultural  interests;  and  nothing  but  a 
sufficient  time  for  their  proper  development  is  necessary  to  reduce 
and  even  extinguish  the  heavy  burthen  of  debts  which  at  present 
exist,  restore  public  confidence  and  mutual  forbearance  between 
citizen  and  citizen." 

This  session  of  the  house  admitted  12  members  from  new  coun- 
ties, and  in  the  opinion  of  many  rendered  the  acts  of  the  house 
of  no  effect.    In  protest,  George  Winchester  and  others  resigned. 

The  State  census  of  1837  showed  a  total  white  population  of 
144,351;  slaves,  164,393.  Acres  of  land  in  cultivation,  1,048,530; 
number  of  bales  of  cotton  produced,  317,783.  The  white  popula- 
tion of  the  larger  towns  were,  Natchez  3,731,  Vicksburg  2,796, 
Columbus  1,448,  Jackson  529,  Clinton  613,  Grand  Gulf  490.  Port 
Gibson,  Woodville  and  Grenada  were  the  only  other  towns  hav- 
ing over  400  whites. 


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MISSISSIPPI  157 

The  congressional  elections  in  1837  were  very  exciting  (see 
Prentiss,  S.  S.)  and  the  campaign  for  governor  equally  so.  There 
were  four  candidates  for  governor,  Alexander  G.  McNutt,  anti- 
bank  Democrat;  Maj.  Benjamin  W.  Edwards,  a  Democrat  simply; 
and  two  Whigs,  Col.  John  A.  Grimball  and  Dr.  Jacob  B.  Morgan. 
Edwards  died  in  the  midst  of  the  campaign  and  the  result  of  the 
balloting  was :    McNutt  12,936 ;  Morgan,  9,896 ;  Grimball.  4,974. 

Lynch,  James  D.,  was  a  native  of  Virginia,  entered  the  Univer- 
sity of  North  Carolina  in  1855;  became  a  teacher  in  Franklin 
academy,  Columbus,  Miss.,  1860,  and  at  the  outbreak  of  the  war 
entered  the  Confederate  service  as  a  private.  After  the  battle  of 
Shiloh  he  organized  a  company  of  which  he  was  captain. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  he  began  the  practice  of  law  at  Columbus, 
but  was  forced  to  give  it  up  on  account  of  deafness.  The  remainder 
of  his  life  was  devoted  to  literary  work.  His  poem,  "Columbia 
Saluting  the  Nations,"  was  unanimously  adopted  by  the  World's 
Columbia  commission  as  the  national  salutation.  The  National 
Editorial  Association  afterwards  adopted  it  as  the  "press  poem  of 
America."  He  is  the  author  of  "The  Bench  and  Bar  of  Missis- 
sippi," "The  Bench  and  Bar  of  Texas,"  "Kemper  County  Vindi- 
cated," and  other  works. 

Lynchburg,  a  postoffice  in  the  northwestern  part  of  De  Soto 
county,  14  miles  northwest  of  Hernando,  the  county  seat. 

Lynncreek,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northwestern  part  of  Noxubee 
county,  situated  on  the  creek  of  the  same  name,  about  15  miles 
northwest  of  Macon,  the  county  seat.  Brookville,  8  miles  to  the 
east  on  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.,  is  the  nearest  banking  and  rail- 
road town.    Population  in  1900,  57. 

Ljmwood,  a  post-hamlet  of  Rankin  county,  about  13  miles  south- 
east of  Brandon,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest  railroad  and  banking 
town.     Population  in  1900,  46. 

Lyon,  an  incorporated  post-town  of  Coahoma  county,  on  the 
Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  2  miles  north  of  Clarksdale,  the 
nearest  banking  town.  Population  in  1900,  166;  population  in 
1906  is  estimated  at  300. 

Maben,  an  incorporated  post-town  in  the  extreme  northwestern 
part  of  Oktibbeha  county,  on  the  line  of  the  Southern  Ry.,  about 
25  miles  west  of  Westpoint,  and  10  miles  east  of  Eupora.  A  branch 
of  the  Bank  of  West  Point  was  established  here  in  1896.  The  town 
also  has  a  large  brick  plant  and  a  fine  cotton  gin.  Population  in 
1900,  282. 

Mabry,  a  postoffice  in  the  northern  part  of  Tate  county,  on  Bear 
Tail  creek,  a  tributary  of  the  Coldwater  river,  10  miles  northeast 
of  Senatobia,  and  6  miles  from  Coldwater,  the  nearest  banking  town. 

Macedonia,  a  postoffice  of  Noxubee  county,  8  miles  southwest  of 
Macon,  the  county  seat. 

Mack,  a  postoffice  of  Marshall  county,  6  miles  northwest  of  Holly 
Springs,  the  county  seat. 

Macksmith,  a  postoffice  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Lawrence 
county,  10  miles  southwest  of  Monticello,  the  county  seat.     It  is 


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158  MISSISSIPPI 

a  station  on  the  Natchez,  Columbia  &  Mobile  R.  R.,  a  logging  road 
running  east  from  Norfield,  Lincoln  county. 

Macon,  the  capital  of  Noxubee  county,  is  a  thriving  city  located 
35  miles  south  by  west  of  Columbus,  and  63  miles  north  of  Meridian. 
It  lies  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Oaknoxubee  river,  on  the  main  line 
of  the   Mobile   &   Ohio  R.   R.     The   city   was   named   for   Gen. 
Nathaniel  Macon,  U.  S.  senator  from  North  Carolina.    Judge  T.  S. 
Sterling  held  the  first  county  court  here  in  the  spring  of  1834,  in 
the  log  house  of  Joseph  H.  Frith.    The  first  brick  court  house  was 
erected  in  1841,  which  was  replaced  just  before  the  War,  in  1860, 
by  a  larger  building ;  the  present  fine  commodious  court  house  was 
erected  in  1900.    Macon  lies  in  an  agricultural  and  cotton-growing 
district,  and  is  the  market  and  shipping  point  for  a  large  section  of 
rich   surrounding  country.     Its   two  banks,   the    Merchants   and 
Farmers,  founded  in  1888,  and  the  Bank  of  Macon,  founded  in  1899, 
are  both  prosperous  institutions.     The  Beacon  is  a  Democratic 
weekly  which  was  established  in  1849,  and  is  now  under  the  edi- 
torial management  of  D.  C.  Ferris,  a  grandson  of  Henry  C.  Ferris, 
the  founder  of  the  paper;  the  Beacon  has  always  remained  in  the 
Ferris  family.    Among  the  industries  of  Macon  are  several  very 
strong  mercantile  establishments,  a  cotton  compress,  cotton  seed 
oil  mill,  four  cotton  gins,  a  large  brick  plant,  an  ice  factory,  bottling 
works,  and  a  large  planing  mill.     Several  lumbering  plants  have 
their  offices  in  Macon,  and  there  are  two  large  lumber  yards,  two 
hotels  and  three  livery  stables.    An  excellent  electric  lighting  and 
water  works  system  is  owned  and  operated  by  the  city.    All  the 
principal  religious  denominations  have  churches  here,  and  the  city 
supports  one  of  the  best  school  systems  in  the  State.    The  Macon 
high  school  building  was  erected  in  1900  at  a  cost  of  $30,000. 
During  the  War  between  the  States,  when  Jackson  was  occupied 
by  Federal  troops,  Macon  was  the  war  capital  of  the  State.    The 
census  of  1900  showed  a  population  of  2,057,  or  500  more  than 
in  1890. 

Macon  Convention,  1889.  There  was  a  convention  of  representa- 
tives of  the  Mississippi  banks  at  Vicksburg  in  November,  1838, 
presided  over  by  H.  G.  Runnels,  and  a  convention  of  the  banks 
of  Tennessee,  Arkansas,  and  Alabama  was  called  for  December, 
by  the  Union  bank,  to  consider  the  resumption  of  specie  payments. 
The  result  was  an  address  to  the  cotton  planters,  merchants  and 
bankers  of  the  Southern  States,  signed  by  prominent  bankers  of 
the  various  States,  headed  by  Nathaniel  A.  Ware,  of  Mississippi, 
proposing  a  scheme  for  basing  money  upon  cotton,  through  a 
banking  and  commercial  alliance  with  the  English  cotton  manu- 
facturers and  the  Bank  of  England.  Under  this  scheme  the  South- 
em  banks  would  make  advances  on  cotton,  and  through  their 
British  correspondents  relieve  the  planter  of  all  further  care  re- 
garding the  marketing  of  their  crops.  A  convention  was  called  at 
Macon,  Ga.,  in  October,  1839,  to  further  consider  this  remarkable 
proposition.  On  production  of  bills  of  lading  the  banks  would 
issue  post  notes,  which  would  be  the  currency  of  the  country. 


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MISSISSIPPI  159 

The  scheme  was  presented  as  a  method  of  protecting  the  cotton 
crop  from  sacrifice  to  the  profit  of  speculators  and  brokers.  This 
was  at  a  time  when  the  so-called  United  States  bank,  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, supplied  the  good  paper  money  in  Mississippi,  and  South 
Carolina  and  New  York  were  preparing  banks  for  a  similar  pur- 
pose. It  was  the  policy  of  S.  S.  Prentiss  and  the  Whigs  to  put  the 
issue  of  paper  money  under  the  control  of  the  national  govern- 
ment. 

Mactobys.    See  Indians. 

Madden,  a  post-village  in  the  eastern  part  of  Leake  county,  12 
miles  southeast  of  Carthage,  the  county  seat.  Philadelphia,  18 
miles  to  the  northeast,  is  the  nearest  railroad  town.  Forest  is  the 
nearest  banking  town.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice.  Popula- 
tion in  1900,  200. 

Maddox,  a  postoffice  in  the  eastern  part  of  Simpson  county,  about 
16  miles  southeast  of  Mendenhall. 

Madison  Coiinty,  in  the  central  part  of  the  State,  was  established 
January  29,  1828,  and  was  named  for  President  James  Madison, 
fourth  President  of  the  United  States.  The  county  has  a  land 
surface  of  714  square  miles.  Embraced  within  the  territory  ceded 
by  the  Choctaws  in  1820,  and  long  known  as  the  "New  Purchase," 
it  was  originally  a  part  of  the  old  county  of  Hinds.  In  1823  Hinds 
surrendered  a  large  section  of  its  area  to  form  the  county  of  Yazoo, 
and  five  years  later,  that  portion  of  Yazoo  lying  east  of  the  Big  Black 
river,  was  taken  to  form  the  county  of  Madison.  The  act  creat- 
ing the  county  recites  that  "So  much  of  the  county  of  Yazoo  as 
lies  east  of  the  Big  Black  river,  beginning  on  the  east  bank  of  said 
river,  where  the  Hinds  county  line  strikes  the  same;  thence  with 
the  said  line  to  Pearl  river;  thence  up  said  river  to  the  Choctaw 
boundary  line;  thence  with  said  boundary  line,  to  where  it  strikes 
the  Big  Black ;  thence  down  the  Big  Black  river  to  the  beginning." 
December  23,  1833,  the  county  was  enlarged  by  adding  "the  terri- 
tory south  of  the  line  drawn  from  the  western  boundary  of  Leake 
county,  through  the  center  of  township  12  of  range  5  east,  and  ex- 
tended west  to  the  old  Choctaw  boundary,  and  thence  west  to  the 
Big  Black  river,  and  west  of  Leake  county."  February  22,  1840, 
the  present  boundary  line  between  Madison  and  Hinds  counties 
was  established  as  follows:  "Beginning  at  that  point  on  the  Big 
Black  river,  which  is  intersected  by  the  range  line  No.  2  west, 
running  thence  due  south  to  the  present  boundary  line  between  the 
said  counties;  thence  east  with  the  present  line  to  the  basis 
meridian ;  thence  south  to  township  No.  6,  north ;  thence  east  to  the 
present  line."  It  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  county  of  Attala, 
on  the  east  by  Leake  county,  on  the  south  by  Rankin  and  Hinds 
counties,  the  Pearl  river  on  the  southeast  forming  the  boundary 
between  Madison  and  Rankin;  on  the  west  by  Yazoo  county,  the 
Big  Black  river  on  the  northwest  forming  the  boundary  between  it 
and  Yazoo  county.'  This  is  one  of  the  richest  farming  sections  of 
the  whole  State  and  early  attracted  a  large  influx  of  settlers.  It  had 
a  population  of  3,675  whites  and  11,238  slaves  as  early  as  1837,  and 


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160  MISSISSIPPI 

had  89,746  acres  under  cultivation  in  1836.  Many  of  the  old  settle- 
ments of  the  region,  such  as  Runnelsville,  Williamsburg,  Madison- 
ville,  Livingston  and  Vernon,  (q.  v.)  are  now  extinct  or  moribund. 
The  first  courts  of  the  county  w^ere  held  at  Beattie's  BluflF,on  the  Big 
Black  river,  and  boats  ascended  the  river  to  this  point.  The  fol- 
lowing men  were  appointed  commissioners  to  select  and  lay  out  a 
county  seat,  and  contract  for  the  erection  of  county  buildings: 
Jonah  R.  Doak,  Robert  Carson,  Sr.,  Archibald  McGehee,  John  P. 
Thompson  and  William  Wilson.  The  first  permanent  county  seat 
was  located  at  the  old  town  of  Livingston,  situated  about  15  miles 
southwest  of  Canton,  and  at  one  time  the  most  important  town  in 
the  county.  It  began  to  decay  when  the  county  seat  was  changed 
to  Madisonville.  The  present  county  site  was  finally  established  at 
Canton,  near  the  center  of  the  county.  Canton  is  a  thriving  town  of 
6,000  people,  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  has  the  largest  nursery 
and  floral  establishment  in  the  State,  and  is  the  center  of  a  locality 
where  the  growing  of  fruits  and  vegetables  for  market  has  assumed 
large  proportions.  Some  of  the  other  important  towns  in  the 
county  are  Madison  Station  (pop.  323),  Ridgeland  (pop.  300), 
Flora  (pop.  304),  Sharon  and  Millville.  In  the  northeast  corner  of 
the  county  formerly  stood  the  old  historic  home  of  Gov.  McWillie, 
"Kirkwood,"  long  known  as  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  hospit- 
able homes  in  the  South,  and  a  refuge  for  its  war-worn  sons  during 
the  Civil  War.  Gen.  Quitman,  Governors  Matthews,  Foote,  Pettus, 
and  McRea,  President  Davis  and  manv  others  of  note  have  been 
entertained  within  its  hospitable  portals. 

The  main  line  of  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.  runs  through  the 
center  of  the  county,  and  a  branch  line  of  the  same  road  runs  from 
Jackson  to  Yazoo  City  and  cuts  across  the  southwestern  corner. 
Besides  the  two  large  rivers  already  mentioned,  numerous  tribu- 
tary creeks  afford  the  region  ample  water  power,  the  power  on 
Kentuctah  and  Doak's  creeks  being  especially  good.  The  timber 
consists  of  all  kinds  of  oaks,  hickory,  pine,  g^m,  poplar,  walnut, 
beech  and  cypress.  The  region  is  gently  undulating  and  the  soil 
various  in  character,  with  a  clay  sub-soil ;  much  of  it  is  very  rich, 
and,  on  the  river  and  creek  bottoms,  of  an  alluvial  quality.  In  the 
southern  part,  quantities  of  limestone  and  marls  have  been  dis- 
covered. Immense  quantities  of  peaches  and  strawberries  are 
grown  along  the  line  of  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.  in  this  county, 
and  shipped  to  the  northern  markets.  Pears,  apples,  figs  and  other 
fruits  are  also  raised  in  abundance  and  do  very  well.  The  region  is 
well  adapted  to  stock  raising  and  sheep  husbandry  on  account  of 
the  excellent  pasturage,  and  in  1900  the  value  of  the  live  stock  in 
the  county  had  reached  a  total  of  $878,489.  It  can  be  made  the 
banner  live  stock  county  of  the  State.  As  compared  with  agri- 
culture, manufactures  have  attained  small  development,  though  the 
last  census  records  a  total  of  75  manufacturing  establishments. 

The  following  statistics,  taken  from  the  last  United  States  census 
for  1900,  and  covering  farms,  manufactures  and  population,  will  be 
found    instructive:      Number    of    farms    4,717,    acreage    in    farms 


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MISSISSIPPI  161 

341,388,  acres  improved  218,172,  value  of  the  land  exclusive  of  the 
buildings  $2,600,260,  value  of  the  buildings  $882,420,  value  of  the 
live  stock  $878,489,  total  value  of  products  not  fed  $1,860,708. 
Number  of  manufacturing  establishments  75,  capital  invested  $179,- 
315,  wages  paid  $34,200,  cost  of  materials  $102,561,  total  value  of 
products  $233,732.  The  population  in  1900  consisted  of  whites 
6,574,  colored  25,919,  a  total  of  32,493  and  5,172  more  than  in  the 
year  1890.  The  population  in  1906  was  estimated  at  37,000.  Farm 
lands  are  rapidly  advancing  in  price  and  a  hill  farm  near  Canton 
was  recently  sold  for  $20  per  acre  cash.  This  farm  had  been  in 
cultivation  75  years.  Such  sales  are  more  or  less  common.  The 
total  assessed  valuation  of  the  real  and  personal  property  in  Madison 
county  in  1905  was  $4,819,430  and  in  1906  it  was  $5,266,701,  showing 
an  increase  during  the  year  of  $447,271. 

Madison  County,  Territorial.  Gov.  Robert  Williams  wrote  to 
Secretary  Albert  Gallatin,  Aug.  23,  1808,  regarding  "the  settle- 
ments on  the  public  lands  in  the  g^eat  bend  of  Tennessee  river, 
within  this  territory.  It  is  stated  there  are  at  least  thirteen  hun- 
dred families  already  settled  on  those  lands;  that  they  contain 
six  or  seven  hundred  militia  organized  into  companies  and  armed. 
There  are  no  laws  or  officers,  civil  or  military  amongst  them,  and 
frequent '  applications  are  made  to  me  on  this  subject.  These 
settlers  being  (as  I  presume)  intruders,  prevent  my  taking  any 
measures  respecting  them,  and  such  as  I  should  were  they  not 
thus  situated."  He  recommended  some  action  by  the  government 
on  the  subject  adapted  to  the  reputed  character  of  the  settlers  as 
honest  and  well-disposed  people.  Being  advised  by  the  president 
to  extend  county  government  to  the  region,  as  the  Indian  title  had 
been  extinguished,  by  the  Cherokee  and  Chickasaw  treaties  of 
1805-6,  Gov.  Williams  issued  his  proclamation  December  13,  1808, 
establishing  the  county  of  Madison,  choosing  the  name  in  compli- 
ment to  the  secretary  of  state.  Thomas  Freeman  was  appointed 
register  of  the  land  office  for  that  region,  and  commissioned  as 
justice  by  the  governor,  who  asked  him  to  recommend  the  appoint- 
ment of  officers,  save  that  of  sheriff,  which  was  to  be  filled  by 
Capt.  Stephen  Neal  of  Natchez  district.  President  Jefferson  i>ar- 
ticularly  advised  the  governor  to  appoint  no  one  to  office  who 
claimed  land  under  the  Georgia  land  companies. 

In  the  spring  of  1810  Madison  county  was  given  a  separate  Ter- 
ritorial judge — Obadiah  Jones,  of  Georgia,  and  the  privilege  of 
suffrage  was  conferred  upon  the  inhabitants.  ^  The  county  seat  was 
Twickenham,  which  name  was  changed  to  Huntsville  by  act  of  the 
Mississippi  assembly  in  1811.  This  was  the  seat  of  the  first  legis- 
lature of  Alabama  State  in  1819,  and  the  meeting  place  of  the 
constitutional    convention. 

Madison  Station,  an  incorporated  post-town  in  the  southern  part 
of  Madison  county,  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  12  miles  by  rail 
north  of  Jackson.  The  Bank  of  Madison  was  established  here  in 
1901,  with  a  capital  of  $20,000.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice. 
Population  in  1900,  323.  It  is  the  banner  town  of  the  county  in  the 
11-11 


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162  MISSISSIPPI 

volume  of  truck  shipments  and  large  quantities  of  strawberries, 
plums,  peaches,  peas  and  beets  are  shipped  in  car  load  lots  during 
the  berry  and  vegetable  season. 

Madisonville,  an  extinct  town  of  Madison  county,  located  about 
12  miles  from  Canton,  in  the  southeastern  part.  When  Madison 
county  was  formed  from  Yazoo  in  1828,  this  place  was  made  the 
county  seat.  It  was  incorporated  in  1836 ;  other  acts  relating  to  its 
charter  were  passed  in  1837  and  1848.  Dr.  James  Anderson,  a  phy- 
sician, and  the  firm  of  Joseph  Coffman  &  Co.,  merchants,  were 
located  at  Madison ville  in  the  early  days.  Major  Walker's  planta- 
tion now  embraces  the  site  of  the  old  settlement. 

Mafiit,  John  Newland,  a  famous  Methodist  preacher,  made  his 
home  for  some  time  at  Natchez,  about  1840,  and  there  published 
a  religious  paper.    He  was  also  in  great  demand  as  a  lecturer. 

He  was  a  native  of  Ireland,  mainly  educated  through  associa- 
tion with  his  fellows,  but  possessed  of  a  remarkable  command  of 
pure  English  and  a  marvelous  voice,  which  in  its  persuasive  tones 
was  well  nigh  irresistable.  Henry  S.  Foote  said  that  he  never 
observed  any  one  else  who  could  produce  such  effects  upon  an 
audience.  Yet  he  seldom  said  anything  that  left  behind  a  useful 
or  permanent  impression.  His  printed  sermons  were  singularly 
cold  and  unimpressive  and  without  noteworthy  thought;  But  he 
was  a  master  of  all  that  appertains  to  the  human  voice  as  an  in- 
strument of  persuasion.  "His  heart  was  warm  and  generous  and 
his  admiration  genuine  of  all  that  is  lofty  in  sentiment  or  action." 
He  was  prone  to  be  carried  away  by  feeling  in  his  attacks  on  the 
social  customs  of  his  day,  and  was  consequently  the  subject  of 
much  criticism,  by  the  young  and  gay. 

Magdalen,  in  the  southern  part  of  Harrison  county,  5  miles  north- 
west of  Gulfport,  the  county  seat. 

Magee,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  eastern  part  of  Simpson  county, 
42  miles  southeast  of  Jackson,  and  10  miles  southeast  of  Menden- 
hall.  It  is  a  station  on  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.  It  has  tele- 
graph, telephone,  express  and  banking  facilities.  The  Magee  Bank 
was  established  in  1902.  One  newspaper  is  published  here,  the 
Magee  Courier,  a  Democratic  weekly,  established  in  1900,  W.  H. 
Watkins,  editor  and  publisher.  Two  saw  mills,  a  wood  working 
plant,  a  cotton  gin,  several  stores,  churches  and  a  good  school  are 
located  here.  Population  in  1900,  100;  the  population  in  1906  was 
estimated  at  1,000. 

Magnavista,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Issaquena 
county,  situated  on  the  Mississippi  river,  20  miles  south  of  Mayers- 
ville,  the  county  seat.  Vicksburg  is  the  nearest  banking  town. 
Population  in  1900,  50. 

Magnolia,  the  capital  of  Pike  county,  is  a  thriving,  incorporated 
town  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  98  miles  north  of  New  Orleans. 
It  is  450  feet  above  tidewater,  and  is  drained  by  the  Tangipahoa 
river  on  the  right  and  Minnehaha  creek  on  the  left,  which  form  the 
eastern  and  western  boundary  lines  of  the  town.  Its  first  court 
house,  together  with  the  valuable  county  records,  was  destroyed 


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by  a  disastrous  fire  in  August,  1882.  It  has  two  banks  with  a  total 
invested  capital  of  $95,000;  three  hotels,  two  good  schools  and  a 
colored  college,  seven  churches,  including  all  the  leading  denomina- 
tions ;  a  complete  system  of  water  works  supplying  artesian  water ; 
an  electric  lighting  plant,  with  a  light  on  every  corner,  and  an  excel- 
lent fire  department.  Among  the  manufacturing  enterprises  now 
in  the  town  are  an  oil  mill,  ice  plant,  a  $200,000  cotton  mill,  a  com- 
press, two  Munger  system  cotton  gins,  and  a  saw  and  planing  mill. 
It  is  surrounded  by  a  lumber,  cotton,  fruit  and  vegetable-growing 
section.  It  has  two  newspapers — the  "Gazette,''  a  Democratic 
semi-weekly,  established  in  1872  and  owned  and  edited  by  Jos.  E. 
Norwood;  and  the  "Magnolia  News,'*  a  Democratic  weekly  edited 
by  J.  B.  Sternberger. 

There  is  a  city  debt  of  $24,800 ;  the  assessed  valuation  of  property 
is  $637,735 ;  the  tax  rate  is  13J4  mills.  Population  in  1900,  1,038 ; 
in  1890,  676 ;  present  estimated  population,  1,500. 

The  following  fraternities  have  lodges  here:  Masons,  Odd 
Fellows,  Knights  of  Honor,  Knights  of  Pythias,  Woodmen  of  the 
World,  the  American  Guild,  The  Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor. 
Company  L,  known  as  the  Magnolia  Guards  of  the  3d  regiment  of 
State  troops,  is  located  here.  The  town  has  an  exceptionally  low 
death  rate  and  has  never  had  a  case  of  yellow  fever  since  its  organ- 
ization. 

Magnolia — State  Flower.  At  the  request  of  the  school  children 
of  the  State,  an  election  was  ordered  to  occur  November  28,  1900, 
to  select  the  "State  Flower."  The  secretary  of  state  received  re- 
turns from  237  schools,  and  23,278  votes  were  cast,  of  which  the 
Magnolia  received  12,745,  the  next  highest  being  the  cotton  bloom 
4,171,  C^pe  jasmine  2,584. 

Maharris,  a  post-hamlet  of  Copiah  county,  11  miles  west  of  Hazle- 
hurst,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  24. 

Mahhed,  a  postoffice  in  the  central  part  of  Perry  county,  2  miles 
south  of  New  Augusta,  the  county  seat,  and  a  station  on  the  Mobile, 
Jackson  &  Kansas  City  R.  R.  It  has  several  stores,  two  churches, 
a  school,  and  a  saw  mill. 

Gallon,  a  post-hamlet  of  Marshall  county,  on  the  Kansas  City, 
Memphis  &  Birmingham  R.  R.,  4  miles  northwest  of  Holly  Springs. 
Population  in  1900,  41. 

Mahrud,  a  postoffice  in  the  western  part  of  Holmes  county,  on 
the  Yazoo  river,  about  20  miles  west  of  Lexington,  the  county  seat. 

Malaria.  This  vague  term  is  used  to  name  the  fevers  which  are 
less  serious  than  yellow  fever,  but  cause  perhaps  more  suflfering 
than  the  latter,  because  of  their  frequency  and  constancy  in  the 
summer  seasons.  It  was  demonstrated  in  1905  that  malarial  fevers 
may  be  practically  prevented  by  a  general  campaign  against 
mosquitoes.  The  malaria  does  not  proceed  directly  from  decayed 
vegetation  or  filth  of  any  kind,  but  the  disease  in  man  is  due  to  a 
microscopic  organism  that  makes  its  home  in  the  red  corpuscles 
of  the  blood.  Its  regular  period  of  growth  and  production  of 
spores  (seed  or  young)  and  the  bursting  of  the  walls  of  the  blood 


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164  MISSISSIPPI 

corpuscles,  are  the  cause  of  the  recurring  chills  and  fevers.  The 
organism  is  communicated  to  human  beings  by  the  species  of 
mosquito  known  as  Anopheles,  which  has  spotted  wings,  and  when 
resting,  hangs  at  right  angles  to  the  ceiling.  The  remedies  are 
good  drainage,  and  the  thorough  screening  of  houses. 

MalcOy  a  hamlet  in  the  northern  part  of  Scott  county,  situated  on 
Taalo  Bayou,  about  13  miles  north  of  Forest,  the  county,  seat.  The 
postoffice  here  was  discontinued  in  1905,  and  it  now  has  rural  free 
delivery  from  Harperville. 

Malcum,  a  post-hamlet  of  Lincoln  county,  10  miles  east  of  Brook- 
haven,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest  banking  and  railroad  town.  It 
is  a  station  on  the  spur  line  of  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  running 
east  from  Brookhaven.    Population  in  1900,  35. 

Malones,  a  hamlet  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Coahoma  county, 
situated  on  the  Mississippi  river,  about  18  miles  west  of  Clarks- 
dale,  the  county  seat.  The  postoffice  at  this  place  was  recently  dis- 
continued and  mail  now  goes  to  Hillhouse.    Population  in  1900,  27. 

Malvina,  a  post-hamlet  of  Bolivar  county,  on  the  Yazoo  &  Missis- 
sippi Valley  R.  R.,  6  miles  east  of  Rosedale,  the  county  seat,  and 
nearest  banking  town.     Population  in  1900,  52. 

Mamie,  a  postoffice  of  Madison  county. 

Mammoth  Springs,  or  Springs  Station,  a  postoffice  in  the  north- 
western part  of  Perry  county,  on  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,  5 
miles  by  rail  northwest  of  Hattiesburg. 

Manassas,  battle,  see  Army  of  Northern  Virginia. 

Manila,  a  postoffice  of  Prentiss  county,  12  miles  east  of  Boone- 
ville,  the  county  seat. 

Mann,  a  postoffice  in  the  southern  part  of  Tishomingo  county, 
on  Big  Bear  creek,  a  tributary  of  the  Tennessee  river,  18  miles  due 
south  of  luka,  the  county  seat. 

Mannassa,  a  postoffice  of  Clarke  county,  10  miles  southeast  of 
Quitman,  the  county  seat. 

Manning,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Rke  county, 
24  miles  from  Magnolia,  the  county  seat.     Population  in  1900,  20. 

Manning,  Van  H.,  was  born  in  Martin  county,  North  Carolina 
July  26,  1839.  His  parents  moved  to  Mississippi  when  he  was  two 
years  of  age,  and  he  was  educated  at  Horn  Lake  academy,  in  De- 
Soto  county,  and  at  the  University  of  Nashville,  where  he  studied 
law  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  He  moved  to  Arkansas  in  1860, 
and  was  colonel  of  the  Third  Arkansas  infantry  in  Lee's  army. 
In  1876  he  was  elected  to  the  Forty-fifth  Congress  from  the  2nd 
Miss.  District;  was  reelected  in  1878  and  1880,  and  served  from 
1877  to  1833.  In  1886-87  he  prosecuted  to  a  successful  issue  the 
suit  of  the  State  in  the  court  of  claims  for  the  five  per  cent,  fund 
withheld  as  an  offset  to  the  non-payment  of  the  war  tax.  He  died 
in  Washington.  "The  joint  canvass  of  Colonel  Manning  and 
Thomas  H.  Walton  in  the  summer  and  autumn  of  1876  will  long  be 
remembered  for  its  brilliancy  and  intensity  of  feeling.  Manning 
was  a  remarkable  stump  speaker,  as  fiery  as  Foote,  and  mingled 
scholary  grace  and  polish  with  passion  and  feeling."     (Rowland.) 


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MISSISSIPPI  165 

Mannsdale,  a  postoffice  of  Madison  county,  11  miles  southwest  of 
Canton,  the  county  seat. 

Mantachie,  an  incorporated  village  in  the  western  part  of 
Itawamba  county,  6  miles  northwest  of  Fulton,  the  county  seat,  and 
14  miles  northeast  of  Tupelo,  the  nearest  railroad  and  telegraph 
town.    Fulton  is  the  nearest  banking  town.    Population  in  1900,  150. 

Mantee,  a  postoffice  in  the  extreme  northeastern  part  of  Webster 
county,  on  the  new  extension  of  the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas 
City  R.  R.,  about  15  miles  from  Walthall,  the  county  seat. 

Manufacturing.  In  1812  there  were  807  spindles  and  1,330  looms 
at  work  in  the  Mississippi  territory,  including  what  is  now  Ala- 
bama, manufacturing  342,472  yards  of  cotton  cloth,  450  yards  of 
linen,  and  7,898  yards  of  woolen  stuffs.  In  1840  the  statistics  of 
the  State  of  Mississippi  indicated  53  cotton  "factories"  with  318 
spindles,  employing  81  hands  and  involving  a  capital  of  $6,420. 

In  1850  a  steam  power  mill  was  in  operation  at  Woodville,  where, 
also,  the  first  railroad  shop  was  established.  In  1857,  it  was  noted 
that  there  was  at  Jackson  a  plow  and  wagon  factory  producing 
a  very  good  output.  The  penitentiary  at  that  time  and  particularly 
in  1861-63,  was  a  considerable  factory, — at  the  last  a  military  fac- 
tory. 

Beginning  in  1865  with  the  Wesson  mills,  there  were  established, 
by  1884,  14  cotton  and  woolen  mills  in  the  State,  and  13  oil  mills, 
and  there  was  a  large  installation  of  saw  mills  in  the  long-leaf 
pine  region.  This  growth  of  industry  was  particularly  rapid  dur- 
ing the  years  1880-84. 

The  Mississippi  Mills,  at  Wesson,  was  described  by  a  newspaper 
correspondent  in  1874,  as  having  a  working  capital  of  $400,000,. 
all  supplied  by  the  stockholders;  a  main  building  50x347  feet,, 
looms  168,  operatives  250,  all  white  and  mainly  from  the  class  of 
non-slaveholders  before  the  war;  highest  wages  paid,  $6  a  week. 
"This  is  emphatically  a  domestic  institution — President  Richard- 
son, of  4 Jackson,  being  an  old  resident,  and  all  the  stockholders 
of  the  same  class — men  who  have  accepted  the  situation,  and  are 
making  a  good  thing  out  of  it/' 

The  census  of  1870  showed  11  tanneries,  14  machinery  factories, 
11  factories  for  agricultural  implements,  2  car  works,  10  textile 
factories.  The  first  fertilizer  factory  was  established  at  Jackson 
in  1881.  A  factory  of  the  same  sort  at  Meridian  is  engaged  also 
in  the  manufacture  of  sulphuric  acid.  Good  fire  brick  have  been 
made  at  different  places  in  Mississippi,  notably  at  Harriston  and 
Meridian.  There  are  two  potteries,  both  on  a  small  scale,  at  Holly 
Springs  and  Biloxi.  (Muckenfoos,  1900.)  There  was  once  a  suc- 
cessful glass  factory  at  Moss  Point.  The  sands  of  Pearl  river 
are  said  to  be  well  adapted  to  the  manufacture.  In  1900  there 
were  18  iron  factories  in  the  State,  using  Alabama  pig  iron.  The 
first  ice  factory  was  established  at  Jackson  in  March,  1880.  There 
were  about  17  in  the  State  in  1900,  the  largest  at  Vicksburg.  The 
manufacture  of  illuminating  gas  from  resin,  began  at  Jackson  in 


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166  MISSISSIPPI 

1857.  Coal  gas  is  little  used,  but  electric  lighting  plants  are  numer- 
ous. 

About  1885  the  Louisville,  New  Orleans  &  Texas  railroad  (now 
Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley)  shops  were  located  at  Vicksburg, 
in  consideration  of  a  donation  of  $100,000  by  the  city,  which  was 
raised  by  an  issue  of  bonds,  and  the  gjant  of  lands.  This  is  the 
principal  manufacturing  establishment  of  the  State. 

The  bottling  of  mineral  wajter  is  a  profitable  industry  which  en- 
gaged four  companies  in  1900,  the  largest  at  Meridian,  and  the 
oldest  at  Raymond. 

There  were  24  turpentine  stills  in  1900. 

The  opening  up  of  the  lumber  region  of  the  State,  after  1865, 
began  on  the  Pascagoula,  attracted  by  the  good  natural  harbor 
with  17  feet  of  water  on  the  bar,  within  four  miles  of  the  mouth 
of  the  river.  Fifteen  saw  mills  of  considerable  capacity  were  erec- 
ted at  the  mouth  of  the  river  by  the  close  of  1872,  in  which  year 
there  was  a  shipment  to  eastern  and  gulf  ports  of  the  United 
States,  and  to  Mexico,  West  Indian  and  European  ports,  of  35,- 
236,500  feet  of  lumber.  A  much  smaller  amount  was  shipped  from 
Pearl  river.  It  was  in  this  year  that  for  the  first  time  after  the  war. 
interest  was  generally  awakened  in  the  development  of  Mississippi 
coast  facilities,  and  the  aid  of  congress  was  solicited. 

(See  Centennial  Exposition,  New  Orleans  exposition ;  Census 
of  1900 ;  Cotton  Seed  Oil.) 

Marianna,  a  postoffice  of  Marshall  county,  about  8  miles  west, 
southwest  of  Holly  Springs,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  23. 

Marie,  a  postoffice  of  Sunflower  county. 

Marietta,  a  post-hamlet  of  Prentiss  county,  about  32  miles  south 
of  Corinth,  and  12  miles  southeast  of  Booneville,  the  county  seat. 
Baldwyn,  10  miles  to  the  west,  on  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.,  is  the 
nearest  railroad,  telegraph  and  express  and  banking  town.  It  has 
a  money  order  postoffice.    Pbpulation  in  1900,  100. 

Marion.  This  old  town  flourished  before  the  War  and  was  the 
county  seat  of  Lauderdale  county  until  the  close  of  that  struggle. 
When  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.  came  through  the  county,  it  missed 
the  town  by  two  miles  and  the  railroad  station  of  the  same  name 
was  made  the  seat  of  justice  and  soon  absorbed  the  business  of  its 
namesake.  Gen.  W.  S.  Patton  was  proprietor  of  the  hotel  at  old 
Marion  in  1860. 

Marion  County  was  established  at  an  early  day  during  the 
territorial  era,  December  9,  1811,  and  received  its  name  in  honor  of 
General  Francis  Marion  of  Revolutionary  fame.  The  county  has 
a  land  surface  of  1,095  square  miles.  It  is  a  sparsely  settled  dis- 
trict in  the  south  central  part  of  the  State  next  to  the  Louisiana 
border.  The  counties  of  Lawrence,  Pike,  and  parts  of  Covington, 
Lincoln  and  Lamar  were  originally  embraced  within  its  extensive 
limits.  It  was  carved  from  the  old  counties  of  Wayne,  Franklin, 
and  Amite,  and  its  original  limits  were  defined  as  follows:  "All 
that  tract  of  country  .  .  .  beginning  on  the  line  of  demarca- 
tion, where  the  fourth  range  of  townships  east  of  Pearl  river  inter- 


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MISSISSIPPI  167 

sects  the  said  line,  thence  west  with  said  line  of  demarcation,  to 
the  sixty-mile  post,  east  of  the  Mississippi,  being  the  first  range  of 
townships  west  of  Tansopiho,  thence  north  on  said  line  of  townships 
to  the  Choctaw  boundary  line,  thence  along  said  Choctaw  boundary 
line  to  the  fourth  range  of  townships  east  of  Pearl  river,  thence 
with  said  range  to  the  beginning."  Within  the  last  few  years, 
several  new  lines  of  railroad  have  been  built  and  the  population 
has  increased  rapidly,  more  than  30  per  cent,  from  1890  to  1900.  A 
quarter  of  a  century  after  its  establishment,  the  county  had  only 
1,940  whites  and  1,654  slaves ;  in  1890  it  had  9,532  inhabitants,  and 
in  1900  it  had  13,501.  Two  of  the  prominent  early  settlers  of  the 
region  were  Dougal  McLaughlin  and  John  Ford,  both  of  whom  rep- 
resented the  county  in  the  Constitutional  Convention  of  1817.  The 
former  was  a  native  of  South  Carolina,  descended  from  an  old  High- 
land Scotch  family,  and  a  man  distinguished  for  his  probity  and 
sterling  worth.  The  following  is  a  partial  list  of  the  civil  officers 
of  the  county  for  the  years  1818-1827:  Charles  M.  Norton,  Ruse 
Perkins,  William  Lott,  Benjamin  Lee,  Isaac  Brakefield,  Henry 
Heninger,  Benjamin  Youngblood,  David  Ford,  John  H.  Norton, 
John  Regan,  Ransom,  M.  Collins,  Justices  of  the  Quorum,  1818- 
1821;  Simeon  Duke,  Ranger,  Assessor  and  Collector,  and  Sheriff; 
Jepthah  Duke,  William  Mellon,  John  Alexander,  County  Treas- 
urers ;  James  Phillips,  David  Ford,  William  Roach,  Hector  McNeal, 
County  Surveyors;  Jacob  Tomlinson,  William  Graham,  Robert 
Stacy,  Wm.  Phillips,  James  Rawles,  Thos.  Collins,  Hope  H.  Lenoir, 
Daniel  Farnham,  Jordan  Elder,  Wm.  H.  Cox,  Nathan  M.  Collins, 
and  Jesse  Crawford,  Justices  of  the  Peace;  Hugh  McGowan, 
William  Spencer,  Judges  of  Probate.  Columbia,  the  county  seat, 
IS  located  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Pearl  river,  contains  a  population 
of  2,000,  and  is  a  station  on  the  Mendenhall-Maxie  branch  of  the 
Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.  The  New  Orleans  Great  Northern  R.  R. 
is  building  through  the  county  from  south  to  north,  beginning  at 
Slidell,  La.,  and  extending  up  the  west  bank  of  the  Pearl  river.  The 
Pearl  river,  and  numerous  tributary  creeks  in  the  western  part, 
constitute  the  principal  water  courses.  These  streams  are  exten- 
sively used  for  logging  operations,  as  Marion  county  lies  entirely 
within  the  long  leaf  pine  region  of  the  State  and  is  well  timbered. 
The  surface  of  the  county  is  gently  undulating  and  the  soil  is  light 
and  sandy  and  reasonably  productive.  On  the  bottoms,  however, 
it  is  fertile  and  raises  excellent  crops  without  the  use  of  fertilizers. 
There  are  also  extensive  "reed  brakes,"  which,  when  drained,  prove 
very  productive.  In  1899,  $18,690  was  expended  for  labor  and 
$22,110  for  fertilizers  on  the  farms  of  the  county.  The  products 
are  corn,  cotton,  oats,  sweet  ind  Irish  potatoes,  peas,  rice,  peanuts 
and  sugar-cane.  Pasturage  is  extensive  and  stock  raising  has 
proved  profitable. 

The  twelfth  United  States  census  for  1900  gives  the  following 
data:  Number  of  farms  1,781,  acreage  of  farms  236,333,  acres  im- 
proved 54,166,  value  of  land  exclusive  of  buildings  $634,450,  value 
of  buildings  $293,710,  value  of  live  stock,  $399,339,  total  value  of 


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168  MISSISSIPPI 

products  not  fed  $612,585.  Number  of  manufacturing  establish- 
ments 43,  capital  $132,538,  wages  paid  $68,322,  cost  of  materials 
$182,004,  total  value  of  products  $379,178.  The  population  in  1900 
consisted  of  whites  9,178,  colored  4,323,  a  total  of  13,601  and  3,969 
more  than  in  the  year  1890.  The  total  assessed  valuation  of  real  and 
personal  property  in  Marion  county  in  1^05  was  $3,856,739  and  in 
1906  it  was  $5,330,728,  which  shows  an  increase  during  the  year  of 
$1,473,989. 

Marion  Station,  a  post-village  of  Lauderdale  county,  on  the 
Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.,  5  miles  northeast  of  Meridian.  It  has  two 
churches,  a  high  school,  several  stores  and  a  money  order  post- 
office.     Population  in  1900,  130. 

Marks',  a  postoffice  of  Quitman  county,  on  the  Yazoo  &  Missis- 
sippi Valley  R.  R.,  6  miles  southeast  of  Belen,  the  county  seat. 

Marksville,  a  postoffice  in  the  northwestern  part  of  Holmes 
county,  on  the  Yazoo  river,  about  18  miles  from  Lexington,  the 
county  seat. 

Marquette  and  Jolict.  After  the  death  of  Hernando  de  Soto, 
more  than  a  century  elapsed  before  any  further  attempt  was  made 
to  explore  the  Mississippi.  The  river  seems  to  have  been  forgot- 
ten, although  several  Spaniards,  either  by  design  or  by  accident, 
had  reached  its  shores.  It  had  been  explored  for  at  least  a  thou- 
sand miles,  was  known  fto  have  at  least  two  branches  equal  in  size 
to  the  finest  rivers  in  Spain,  to  be  nearly  a  mile  wide  and  perfectly 
navigable,  and  yet  it  was  laid  down  on  the  maps  as  an  insignifi- 
cant stream,  often  not  distinguished  by  its  name  of  Espiritu  Santo, 
and  we  can  only  conjecture  what  petty  line  was  intended  for  the 
great  river  of  the  west. 

Thus  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi  had  been  abandoned  by  the 
Spaniards,  and  a  few  years  after,  the  French  at  the  north,  began  to 
hear  of  it  through  the  western  missionaries  and  traders,  the  two 
classes  who  alone  had  carried  on  the  discovery  of  the  west  for  the 
French.  Among  the  latter  was  Joliet,  and  among  the  former, 
Marquette.  Says  Bancroft:  "The  long-expected  discovery  of  the 
Mississippi  was  now  at  hand,  to  be  accomplished  by  Joliet  of  Que- 
bec, of  whom  there  is  scarce  a  record  but  this  one  excursion  that 
gives  him  immortality  and  by  Marquette,  who,  after  years  of  pious 
assiduity  to  the  poor  wrecks  of  Hurons,  whom  he  planted  near 
abundant  fisheries,  on  the  cold  extremity  of  Michigan,  entered, 
with  equal  humility,  upon  a  career  which  exposed  his  life  to  per- 
petual danger,  and  by  its  results  affected  the  destiny  of  nations." 
In  1672  the  French  minister  wrote  to  Talon,  then  Intendant  of 
Canada:  "As  after  the  increase  of  the  colony,  there  is  nothing 
more  important  for  the  colony  than  the  discovery  of  a  passage  to 
the  south  sea,  his  majesty  wishes  you  to  give  it  your  attention." 
(Discovery  and  Exploration  of  the  Mississippi,  Shea.)  As  Talon 
was  about  to  return  to  France,  he  recommended  Joliet  to  his  suc- 
cessor Frontenac.  "The  Chevalier  de  Grand  Fontaine,"  writes 
Frontenac,  on  November  2,  1672,  "has  deemed  expedient  for  the 
service  to  send  the  sieur  Jolliet  to  discover  the  south  sea  by  the 


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MISSISSIPPI  169 

Maskoutens  country,  and  the  great  river  Mississippi,  which  is  be- 
lieved to  empty  into  the  California  sea.  He  is  a  man  of  experience 
in  this  kind  of  discovery,  and  has  already  been  near  the  great  river, 
of  which  he  promises  to  see  the  mouth."  Marquette  was  selected 
to  accompany  him,  and  the  winter  was  spent  in  preparation,^  in 
studying  what  had  been  learned  of  the  great  river,  in  assembling 
around  them  Indians  who  had  some  knowledge  of  the  river,  and  in 
drawing  their  first  rude  map  of  the  Mississippi,  and  the  water 
courses  that  led  to  it.  They  made  careful,  cool  investigations,  and 
though  the  discovery  was  dangerous,  as  little  as  possible  was  left 
to  chance.  They  embarked  in  May,  1673,  and  descended  as  far 
as  the  33rd  degree,  where  for  the  first  time  they  were  met  with 
a  hostile  reception  by  the  excited  Metchigameas.  By  the  aid  of 
the  mysterious  calumet,  they  finally  made  their  peace  and  de- 
scended thirty  miles  farther  to  the  village  of  Akansea,  on  the 
eastern  shore.  Here  they  were  well  received,  and  learned  that  the 
mouth  of  the  river  was  but  ten  days  sail  from  the  village.  But 
they  also  heard  that  there  were  nations  there  trading  with  the 
Europeans,  and  that  there  were  wars  between  the  tribes.  They 
now  saw  that  the  Mississippi  emptied  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
between  Florida  and  Tampico,  two  Spanish  points,  and  feared  lest 
they  might  fall  into  their  hands.  Consequently,  after  a  night  of 
consultation,  they  decided  to  return,  and  set  out  from  Akansea 
July  17  for  the  long  homeward  voyage.  Unfortunately,  Joliet  lost 
the  journal  and  map  of  his  voyage,  while  shooting  the  rapids  above 
Montreal,  and  was  forced  to  draw  up  a  narrative  and  map  from 
recollection,  which  Frontenac  transmitted  to  France  in  November, 
1674.  Marquette,  whose  health  had  suffered  from  the  long  journey, 
remained  behind  at  St.  Francis  to  recruit  his  strength.  He  also 
had  drawn  up  a  map  and  journal  of  his  voyage,  and  as  is  known 
from  his  autograph  letter,  transmitted  copies  to  his  superior  at  his 
request  prior  tp  October.  Doubtless  the  French  government  was 
possessed  of  these  in  1675,  but  the  court  allowed  the  whole  affair 
to  pass  unnoticed.  The  narrative  was  not  even  published  until 
Thevenot  obtained  a  copy  in  1681  and  published  the  same.  The 
fruits  of  this  celebrated  voyage  would  never  have  been  gathered, 
except  for  the  courage  and  enterprise  of  La  Salle,  who  knew  of  the 
voyage  and,  perhaps,  had  even  been  one  of  the  few  that  saw  the 
maps  and  journal  of  Joliet,  before  they  were  lost,  and  who  finished 
what  they  had  begun  in  1682  by  descending  the  Mississippi  to  its 
mouth. 

Marschalk,  Andrew,  pioneer  of  printing  in  Mississippi,  who  en- 
tered the  United  States  army  from  New  Jersey,  in  1791,  for  the 
Indian  wars  in  Ohio.  He  was  promoted  to  captain  in  August, 
1794,  and  retained  as  lieutenant  of  artillery  and  engineers  in  No- 
vember, 1796.  He  was  with  the  troops  that  followed  Guion  down 
the  river  in  1797,  and  was  associated  with  Lieut.  Meriweather 
Lewis  in  the  garrison  at  Chickasaw  bluffs.  (See  Military  Occupa- 
tion.) Afterward  he  was  in  the  garrison  at  Walnut  Hills.  Mars- 
chalk  was  a  printer  by  trade  and  personally  bore  a  strong  resem- 


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170  MISSISSIPPI 

blance  to  Benjamin  Franklin.  In  the  spring  of  1799,  on  account 
of  his  qualifications  as  a  printer,  he  was  assigned  to  command  at 
the  post  of  Natchez,  by  command  of  Gen.  Wilkinson,  so  that  he 
might  print  the  laws  of  the  new  Territory.  In  July  of  that  year 
the  governor  addressed  an  earnest  remonstrance  to  Maj.  Gushing, 
then  commanding  on  the  river,  against  the  transfer  of  Marschalk 
to  Walnut  Hills.  It  seems  that  Marschalk's  fellow  officers  ridi- 
culed him  for  making  himself  useful  in  this  way,  and  Gushing, 
something  of  a  martinet,  would  not  allow  it  unless  the  lieutenant 
would  accept  a  furlough.  (Sargent's  Journal,  p.  203.)  At  Walnut 
Hills  he  finished  the  printing  of  the  25  laws  of  the  Territory,  says 
th^  Vose  Mss. 

A  newspaper  called  the  Mississippi  Gazette  wa^  issued  early 
in  the  year  1800,  and  this  must  have  been  the  work  of  the  indus- 
trious lieutenant.  He  was  honorably  discharged  from  the  army 
June  1,  1802,  and  thereafter  was  publisher  of  newspapers  and 
shared  with  Terrall  the  honors  of  public  printer,  as  the  favors  of 
politics  permitted.  In  1814  he  was  succeeded  by  P.  Isler.  Mars- 
chalk  was  a  "Wayneite"  in  the  army,  and  in  politics  a  Federalistic 
Republican,  and  supported  Governors  Williams  and  Holmes 
against  the  other  branch  of  the  party,  led  by  Gato  West  and 
Gowles  Mead.  He  was  engaged  in  a  bitter  newspaper  warfare 
as  publisher  of  the  Herald,  with  Terrall,  of  the  Messenger,  in  Wil- 
liams' administration.  He  was  prominent  in  the  militia,  adjutant 
of  the  First  regiment,  promoted  to  major  commanding  the  bat- 
talion for  the  expected  war  in  1809,  brigade-major  for  the  Terri- 
tory in  1810,  and  adjutant-general  and  inspector,  with  the  rank  of 
colonel,  December,  1811. 

In  1815,  when  George  Poindexter  was  one  of  the  Territorial 
judges,  Marschalk,  publishing  the  Washington  Republican,  made 
a  ferocious  attack  upon  him,  including  the  story  that  Poindexter 
mounted  his  horse  and  rode  from  the  field  to  New  Orleans  when 
the  cannon  opened,  January  8.  Poindexter  called  Marschalk  be- 
fore him  for  contempt  of  court.  He  refused  to  answer  interroga- 
tories, and  was  fined  the  limit  of  the  Territorial  law,  $20,  with  im- 
prisonment for  24  hours.  At  the  end  of  that  time,  when  called  be- 
fore the  court,  he  said,  "I  thank  your  honor  for  sentence.  I  pay 
the  fine.  I  meant  a  contempt."  He  was  then  indicted  for  libel, 
and  the  result  of  the  trial  was  said  by  Judge  Leake  to  have  vindi- 
cated the  character  of  Judge  Poindexter.  After  this  Poindexter 
assaulted  the  editor  in  his  office,  whereupon  a  warrant  was  issued, 
from  which  the  judge  released  himself  by  a  writ  of  habeas  corpus. 
He  was  the  first  public  printer  of  the  State,  in  1818,  and  held  the 
office  several  times  thereafter.  His  death  occurred  August  10, 
1837. 

Marshall,  a  post-hamlet  of  Sunflower  county,  24  miles  north  of 
Indianola,  the  county  seat.  Ruleville,  4  miles  southeast,  on  the 
Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  is  the  nearest  banking  and  rail- 
road town.    Population  in  1900,  45. 


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MISSISSIPPI  171 

Marshall,  Chas.  Kimball,  was  born  in  Durham,  Me.,  August  29, 
1811,  of  French  Huguenot  descent.  His  parents  removecj  to  Bos- 
ton, and  gave  him  the  best  school  advantages  for  several  years, 
and  then  they  came  to  the  South.  He  held  a  position  in  New  Or- 
leans for  a  while,  attended  Woodward  college,  Cincinnati,  until 
his  funds  became  exhausted,  when  he  returned  to  New  Orleans 
and  went  to  work  in  a  foundry,  where  sugar  mills  were  manufac- 
tured, in  order  to  secure  means  to  continue  his  college  course.  He 
was  soon  placed  in  charge  of  the  foundry,  and,  while  holding  this 
position  he  carried  on  his  studies,  also  held  religious  services  at 
the  parish  prison.  In  May  1832  he  was  licensed  to  preach  by  the 
Methodist  conference  at  New  Orleans.  He  started  to  college 
again,  but  stopped  at  Natchez,  to  supply  a  pulpit  which  had  just 
been  vacated.  At  every  service  the  church  was  thronged,  and  he 
found  himself  famous  in  a  day.  He  was  induced  by  the  oldest 
ministers  to  give  up  his  purpose  of  re-entering  college,  and  he  be- 
came a  member  of  the  Mississippi  Conference  in  1832.  The  hand- 
some and  eloquent  young  man  was  at  once  in  demand  for  the  best 
pulpits.  He  was  wonderfully  successful  as  a  pastor  in  Baton  Rouge, 
La.,  Jackson,  Miss.,  Vicksburg,  and  other  places. 

Dr.  Marshall  had  all  the  qualifications  of  a  great  orator,  and  as 
such  ranked  in  popular  esteem  with  Prentiss.  The  two  men  were 
friends,  each  admiring  the  splendid  genius  of  the  other.  He  dedi- 
cated more  churches  and  occupied  the  pulpit  or  platform  at  more 
college  commencements  than  any  man  who  ever  preached  in  the 
Southwest.  His  fame  as  an  orator  became  international.  He  was 
a  public  spirited  citizen  and  was  a  leader  in  every  movement  to 
develop  the  South's  material  resources. 

In  1836  he  married  Amanda  Vick,  daughter  of  the  founder  of 
Vicksburg,  and  they  made  that  city  their  home.  But  he  continued 
his  ministerial  work  with  zeal  and  energy  to  the  end  of  his  days. 
Much  of  his  life  was  spent  in  helping  those  in  distress.  He  passed 
through  13  yellow  fever  epidemics,  ministering  night  and  day 
to  the  sick  and  dying,  and  was  especially  active  during  the  great 
epidemic  of  1878.  Few,  if  any,  havfe  ever  shown  such  heroism  and 
^self  sacrifice  in  times  of  distress  and  danger.  During  the  war  of 
1861-65  he  devoted  himself  with  untiring  energy  to  the  sick  and 
wounded  in  the  field.  To  him  the  Confederate  government  was 
indebted  for  its  system  of  depots  and  hospitals,  and  for  its  factory 
for  making  wooden  legs,  the  model  of  which  he  drew  up.  He  gave 
much  attention  to  the  "negro  problem."  In  1880  he  delivered  an 
address  before  the  board  of  directors  of  the  American  Colonization 
society,  declaring  that  colored  men  were  not  necessary  to  Southern 
industry,  and  that  the  future  of  the  American  negro  was  in  the 
colonization  of  Africa.  In  1883  he  published  a  pamphlet,  "The 
Colored  Race,"  being  a  reply  to  Rev.  J.  L.  Tucker,  of  Jackson,  in 
which  he  contended  that  the  negro  of  America  was  not  brought 
into  the  world  without  capacity  for  progress.  He  died  at  Vicks- 
burg, Jan.  14,  1891. 


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172  MISSISSIPPI 

Marshall  County  was  established  February  9,  1836,  the  year  in 
which  the  Chickasaw  cession  of  1832  was  cut  up  into  counties,  and 
settlers  were  rapidly  pouring  into  the  new  region.  The  county  has 
a  land  surface  of  707  square  miles.  It  was  named  for  Chief  Justice 
John  Marshall  and  formerly  included  within  its  area  a  considerable 
portion  of  Benton,  Tate,  and  several  other  counties.  The  act 
creating  the  county  defined  its  limits  as  follows:  '^Beginning  at 
the  point  where  the  line  of  the  basis  meridian  intersects  the  northern 
boundary  line  of  the  State,  and  running  thence  south  with  the  said 
basis  meridian  line,  to  the  center  of  township  6 ;  thence  west  through 
the  center  of  township  6,  according  to  the  sectional  lines,  to  the 
center  of  range  5  west;  thence  north  through  the  center  of  range 
5  west,  according  to  the  sectional  lines,  to  the  northern  boundary 
line  of  the  State,  and  thence  east  with  the  said  boundary  line,  to 
the  beginning." 

Its  original  area  was  about  23  townships  or  828  square  miles.  In 
1870  it  gave  up  part  of  its  territory  on  the  east  to  Benton  county, 
(q.  V.)  and  in  1873  it  gave  up  another  portion  of  its  area  to  assist 
in  the  formation  of  Tate  county,  and  received,  in  lieu  of  the  portion 
surrendered  to  Tate,  all  that  portion  of  De  Soto  county  lying  with- 
in townships  1  and  2,  R.  5  west.  Subsequent  slight  modifications 
of  its  boundaries  have  resulted  in  defining  its  present  limits  as 
follows :  "Beginning  on  the  line  between  the  States  of  Mississippi 
and  Tennessee  at  the  center  of  R.  5  west ;  thence  east  on  said  State 
line  to  the  line  between  ranges  1  and  2  west ;  thence  south  on  said 
line  to  the  southwest  corner  of  section  6,  T.  3,  R.  1  west;  thence 
east  on  section  lines  to  the  southeast  corner  of  section  4,  T.  3,  R.  1 
west ;  thence  due  south  on  section  lines  to  the  southwest  comer  of 
section  3,  T.  6,  R.  1  west ;  thence  east  to  the  basis  meridian ;  thence 
south  by  the  said  meridian  to  the  Tallahatchie  river;  thence  down 
said  river  with  its  meanderings,  to  the  mouth  of  Little  Spring  creek ; 
thence  up  said  creek  to  the  center  of  township  6;  thence  west  by 
section  lines  to  the  line  between  R's  4  and  5,  west ;  thence  north  to 
the  line  between  T*s  4  and  5 ;  thence  west  to  the  center  of  R.  5  west ; 
thence  due  north  to  the  beginning."  It  is  an  attractive  stretch  of 
country,  located  on  the  extreme  northern  border  of  the  State  next 
to  Tennessee,  and  is  bounded  on  the  east  by  Benton  county,  on  the  • 
south  by  Lafayette  county,  the  Tallahatchie  river  forming  part  of 
the  dividing  line  in  the  southeastern  corner,  and  on  the  west  by 
Tate  and  De  Soto  counties. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  its  civil  officers  for  the  year  1837: 
William  H.  Bourland,  Clerk  of  Probate;  James  C.  Alderson,  Clerk 
of  Circuit  Court;  Thomas  Lane,  Probate  Judge;  M.  J.  Blackwell, 
Surveyor;  Frederick  Wells,  Assessor  and  Collector;  Thomas  J. 
Oliver,  Treasurer;  Benj.  Daluron,  Coroner;  T.  McCrosky,  Sheriff; 
G.  W.  Graham,  Ranger ;  Dickson  Rogers,  Henry  White,  Wm.  Hicks, 
W.  C.  Edmundson,  E.  H.  Patts,  Board  of  Police;  John  Roaks,  T.  L. 
Treadwell,  D.  E.  Brittonum,  Henry  Moore,  Milton  P.  Johnson, 
Geo.  W.  Wry,  T.  M.  Yancy,  J.  C.  Randolph,  J.  B.  Cockran,  Robert 


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MISSISSIPPI  173 

Carson,  Justices  of  the  Peace ;  John  P.  Planes,  James  Rhodes,  Sill- 
mane  Weaver,  John  M.  Malone,  Lewis  Johnston,  Constables. 

Marshall  county  received  its  full  share  of  settlers  during  the  early- 
rush  of  emigration  into  the  newly  opened  Chickasaw  cession.  By 
the  year  1840,  it  had  a  population  of  about  17,500,  and  by  the  year 
1850  the  population  was  29,089.  Among  these  were  many  prom- 
inent families  and  wealthy  planters. 

Three  of  the  earliest  settlements  were  at  Tallaloosa,  located  about 
8  miles  southwest  of  Holly  Springs,  on  the  Pigeon  Roost  creek; 
Waterford,  one  mile  west  of  the  station  of  the  same  name  on  the 
Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  and  the  place  of  muster  for  the  militia  of  that 
part  of  the  State ;  and  Hudsonville,  about  4  miles  southwest  of  old 
Lamar,  on  the  stage  road  from  Lagrange,  Tenn.,  to  Holly  Springs, 
Miss.,  and  2  miles  southeast  of  the  station  of  the  same  name  on 
the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.  All  three  places  are  now  practically 
extinct.  Its  chief  town  and  county  seat  is  Holly  Springs,  the 
"City  of  Flowers,"  containing  3,500  inhabitants  and  located  near  the 
center  of  the  county  at  the  junction  of  the  Illinois  Central,  and  the 
Kansas  Qty,  Memphis  &  Birmingham  railways.  Mr.  Addison  Craft, 
one  of  the  pioneers  of  Marshall  county,  states  that  it  was  named  by 
the  roadsters  who  traveled  from  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs  to  the  land 
office  at  Pontotoc.  At  this  spot  they  found  an  extensive  ravine 
covered  with  holly,  and  having  some  30  or  more  clear,  cold  springs 
of  water.  It  was  an  excellent  camping  ground  and  the  camp  w^s 
called  Holly  Springs.  It  is  the  center  of  a  good  dairy  and  market- 
garden  region,  has  several  factories  and  the  most  extensive  pottery 
works  in  the  State.  It  is  also  the  seat  of  the  Mississippi  Synodical 
College,  and  the  North  Mississippi  Experiment  Station.  It  was 
here  that  Gen.  Van  Dorn  made  his  celebrated  raid  on  the  Federal 
stores  left  behind  by  Grant,  December  20,  1862.  Some  of  the 
other  more  important  settlements  are  Byhalia  (pop.  760),  Potts 
Camp  (pop.  306),  Redbanks  on  the  K.  C.  M.  &  B.  R.  R.,  Waterford 
(pop.  128),  Hudsonville  on  the  I.  C.  R.  R.,  and  Bethlehem,  Corners- 
ville,  Mount  Pleasant  and  Wallhill  away  from  the  railroads.  The 
region  lies  in  the  yellow  loam  district,  its  surface  is  undulating, 
level  on  the  river  and  creek  bottoms.  The  soil  on  the  bottom 
lands  is  fertile,  on  some  of  the  upland  ridges  poor  and  sandy  and 
on  many  of  the  table  lands  quite  productive.  It  produces  good  crops 
of  cotton,  corn,  small  grains,  ve|[etables,  and  all  the  large  and  small 
fruits  do  well.  The  timber  consists  of  oaks,  hickory,  walnut,  poplar, 
gum,  beech,  maple,  cypress,  etc.  Excellent  pasturage  is  to  be  had 
and  the  live  stock  industry  is  very  profitable.  In  1900  the  live  stock 
was  valued  at  more  than  $800,000.  Its  close  proximity  to  the  large 
city  of  Memphis  (50  miles),  and  the  two  important  lines  of  rail- 
road which  cross  its  surface,  the  Illinois  Central  and  the  Kansas 
City,  Memphis  &  Birmingham,  give  it  a  ready  outlet  for  its  num- 
erous products.  The  more  important  water  courses  in  the  county 
are  the  Tallahatchie  river  on  the  south  and  its  tributaries,  and  the 
numerous  creeks  flowing  west,  which  constitute  the  headwaters 
of  the  Coldwater  river.    None  of  these  streams  are  navigable,  how- 


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174  MISSISSIPPI 

ever.  A  number  of  lignite  beds  and  some  good  marls  have  been 
found  in  the  county. 

The  twelfth  census  of  the  United  States  for  the  year  1900  gives 
the  following  farm,  manufacturing  and  population  statistics  for 
Marshall  county :  Number  of  farms  4,516,  acreage  in  farms  379,098, 
acres  improved  82,581,  value  of  the  land  exclusive  of  the  buildings 
$1,733,630,  value  of  the  buildings  $813,720,  value  of  live  stock  $803,- 
901,  total  value  of  products  not  fed  $1,751,664.  Number  of  manufac- 
tures 98,  capital  invested  $151,428,  wages  paid  $39,436,  cost  of  ma- 
terials $77,589,  total  value  of  products  $192,903.  The  popu- 
lation consisted  of  whites  8,966,  colored  18,708,  a  total  of  27,674,  or 
1,631  more  than  in  the  year  1890.  There  has  since  been  a  steady 
increase  in  the  population  and  in  manufactures.  Land  values  are 
advancing  and  good  properties  are  in  demand  at  a  good  price.  The 
total  assessed  valuation  of  real  and  personal  property  in  Marshall 
county  in  1905  was  $3,031,618.86  and  in  1906  it  was  $3,231,123, 
showing  an  increase  of  $199,504.14  during  the  year. 

Martin,  an  incorporated  post-village  of  Claiborne  county,  on  the 
Natchez-Jackson  branch  of  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R., 
8  miles  southeast  of  Port  Gibson,  the  county  seat.  Hermanville 
is  its  nearest  banking  town.  It  has  a  money  order  postoffice,  and 
express,  telegraph  and  telephone  facilities.  Population  in  1900,  151. 
It  was  named  in  honor  of  General  W.  T.  Martin  of  Natchez. 

Martin,  Francois  Xavier,  Territorial  judge,  was  born  in  Marseil- 
les, France,  March  17,  1764,  removed  to  Martinique  at  the  age  of 
18  years,  and  thence  went  to  the  United  States,  making  his  home  at 
New  Bern,  N.  C.,  in  1786.  He  learned  the  printer's  trade  as  a 
means  of  acquiring  the  English  language,  with  such  success  that 
he  became  proprietor  of  a  newspaper  and  publisher  of  schoolbooks 
and  almanacs.  Studying  law  and  gaining  admission  to  the  bar, 
he  extended  his  publishing  ventures  to  law  treaties  of  his  own 
compiling,  including  a  digest  of  State  laws  and  British  statutes 
in  force,  and  in  1797,  his  Notes  of  a  Few  Decisions  of  the  superior 
courts  of  North  Carolina  and  the  circuit  court  of  the  United  States, 
1778-97.  He  also  collected  materials  for  a  history  of  North  Caro- 
lina, published  in  the  form  of  annals  at  New  Orleans  in  1829.  Af- 
ter 20  years  of  successful  practice  as  a  lawyer  he  was  appointed 
judge  of  the  Mississippi  territory,  March  7,  1809,  to  succeed  the 
venerable  Judge  Bruin,  and  thence,  after  a  brief  service,  he  was 
transferred  to  the  bench  of  the  Territory  of  Orleans,  where  his 
services  gained  for  him  the  title  of  father  of  the  jurisprudence  of 
Louisiana.  He  was  made  attorney-general  of  the  State  in  1813, 
judge  of  the  supreme  court  in  1815,  and  chief  justice  in  1837,  retir- 
ing from  the  bench  in  1845.  His  death  occurred  in  December, 
1846,  at  New  Orleans.  He  was  the  author  of  a  digest  and  reports 
of  Louisiana  law,  and  a  history  of  Louisiana  from  the  settlement 
until  1814. 

Martin,  W.  T.  ^Mr.  Martin  opposed  the  doctrine  of  secession, 
as  he  said  in  the  convention  of  1865,  "with  all  my  energy,  in  1851 ; 
and  in  1860  opposed  it  with  such  pertinacity  that  I  was  accused 


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MISSISSIPPI  175 

of  being  unfaithful  to  the  South  and  not  fit  to  be  trusted.  .  .  . 
The  ordinance  of  secession  was  an  act  of  revolution.  As  such 
alone,  I  was  willing  to  fight  to  sustain  it.'' 

In  1860  he  was  captain  of  the  Adams  Troop  of  cavalry,  one  of  the 
ten  companies  in  the  State  army,  which  went  to  Memphis  and  was 
mustered  into  the  service  of  the  Confederate  service  June  16,  1861. 
Going  to  Virginia  with  other  Mississippi  cavalry  companies,  the 
2d  Mississippi  battalion  was  formed  under  the  command  of  Martin 
as  major.  This  was  the  only  representation  of  Mississippi  cav- 
alry in  the  east.  In  July,  1861,  the  battalion  was  merged  with 
Love's  Alabama  battalion,  and  a  Georgia  company,  to  form  the 
Jeflf  Davis  Legion,  of  which  Martin  was  the  commander.  In  the 
latter  part  of  1861  he  was  on  scouting  duty  toward  the  Potomac, 
and  was  presently  promoted  to  lieutenant-colonel,  and  colonel. 
He  was  particularly  distinguished  in  J.  E.  B.  Stuart's  raid  around 
McQellan's  army,  before  Richmond,  in  the  summer  of  1862,  he 
and  Fitz  Lee  and  W.  H.  F.  Lee  leading  Stuart's  battalions.  Pro- 
moted to  brigadier-general  December,  1862,  he  was  sent  to  the 
west,  whence  came  an  urgent  demand  for  assistance.  Subsequently 
the  legion,  under  Cols.  William  G.  Conner  and  J.  Fred  Waring, 
and  Majors  I.  F.  Lewis  and  W.  M.  Stone,  was  distinguished  in  the 
battles  of  Brandy  Station  and  Gettysburg,  Trevillion  and  Ream's 
Station,  and  made  its  last  fight  before  Raleigh,  N.  C,  in  April, 
1865.  In  Tennessee  Gen.  Martin,  whose  reputation  was  wide- 
spread as  an  intrepid  cavalry  leader,  was  given  command  of  a  divi- 
sion including  the  brigades  of  Roddey  and  Cosby,  with  which  he 
took  part  in  VanDorn's  brilliant  victory  at  Thompson's  Station, 
March  5,  1863,  and  rendered  important  service  during  the  Tulla- 
homa  campaign.  He  was  in  command  of  the  cavalry  in  Long- 
street's  expedition  against  Knoxville;  was  promoted  to  major- 
general  November,  1863,  and  commanded  a  division  of  Wheeler's 
cavalry  during  the  Atlanta  campaign,  after  which  he  was  assigned 
to  command  in  northwest  Mississippi.  After  the  surrender  of  the 
armies  he  was  elected  a  delegate  to  the  constitutional  convention 
of  1865  (q.  v.),  and  was  a  member  of  the  constitutional  convention 
of  1890.    In  1905  he  was  appointed  postmaster  at  Natchez. 

Martiiisville,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  south-central  part  of  Copiah 
county,  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  5  miles  south  of  Hazlehurst, 
the  county  seat.  It  has  express  and  telegraph  offices,  two  churches, 
a  school,  and  lumber  mills.    Population  in  1900,  68. 

Marydell,  a  postoffice  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Leake  county, 
12  miles  from  Carthage,  the  county  seat. 

Mashulaville,  a  post-village  of  Noxubee  county,  situated  on 
Harshuqua  creek,  10  miles  west  of  Macon,  the  county  seat,  and 
nearest  telegraph,  express  and  banking  town.  It  has  three  churches, 
two  stores,  and  a  money  order  postoffice.  A  fine  saw  mill  and  a  gin 
are  located  here.    Population  in  1900,  125. 

Mason  and  Harp.  The  Mississippi  river  had  its  pirates,  and 
there  is  mention  of  their  operations  from  New  Madrid  and  Chick- 
asaw Bluffs,   in  the  old  chronicles.     Emigrants  were  frequently 


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176  MISSISSIPPI 

waylaid  and  robbed  of  their  possessions  and  occasionally  lives  were 
taken.  While  the  Mississippi  river  had  these  terrors,  the  adven- 
turer from  the  South  Atlantic  States  had  first  to  pass  the  dreaded 
Mussel  Shoals,  where  the  Chickamauga  Indians  levied  tribute  upon 
lives  and  property.  When  the  right  to  travel  the  trail  from  Natchez 
to  Bear  Creek  was  obtained  from  the  Indians,  bands  of  highway- 
men began  to  infest  that  line  of  travel  also.  In  April,  1802,  Gov- 
ernor Claiborne  was  informed  that  a  band  headed  by  Samuel  Mason 
and  Wiley  Harp,  had  attempted  to  board  the  boat  of  Col.  Joshua 
Baker  between  the  Yazoo  and  Walnut  Hills.  The  same  outlaws 
had  been  operating  on  the  trail,  and  for  years  had  been  robbing 
travelers  and  committing  murders.  Col.  Daniel  Burnet  was 
ordered  to  take  15  or  20  volunteers  and  pursue  the  banditti,  and 
the  United  States  officers  at  Walnut  Hills  and  Bear  Creek  were 
asked  to  cooperate.  A  reward  of  $2,000  was  offered  for  their  cap- 
ture. Harp  seems  to  have  separated  from  the  band  about  this 
period  of  time  and  gone  up  into  Kentucky.  John  L.  Swaney,  the 
old  mail  rider  on  the  Natchez  Trace,  claimed  to  know  both  Harp 
and  Mason  well.  He  said  there  were  two  brothers,  one  known  as 
Big  Harp,  and  the  other  as  Little  Harp.  According  to  this  au- 
thority. Big  Harp,  after  a  career  of  crime  in  Tennessee  and  Ken- 
tucky, was  hunted  down  and  killed  by  a  company  of  men,  but  his 
brother.  Little  Harp,  made  his  escape,  and  was  undoubtedly  one 
of  the  men  hung  at  Greenville.  Mason  and  most  of  his  g^ng  made 
their  escape  from  the  country,  if  the  following  testimony  of  Swaney 
IS  to  be  credited.  He  says:  "On  one  of  my  return  trips  from 
Natchez,  I  fell  in  with  the  wife  of  young  Tom  Mason  (according  to 
Swaney,  the  elder  Mason  was  known  as  Tom  Mason ;  he  had  two 
sons  Tom  and  John,  who,  with  six  or  eight  other  men  composed 
the  band),  carrying  a  baby  and  a  small  sack  of  provisions  in  her 
arms.  She  was  making  for  the  Chickasaw  Agency,  to  go  thence  to 
her  friends.  She  begged  me  to  help,  her  on  her  way,  which  I  did 
by  placing  her  on  my  horse.  I  did  this  for  a  day,  and  made  up  the 
lost  time  by  traveling  all  night.  Mrs.  Mason  told  me  they  were 
all  safe  and  out  of  reach."  The  usually  accepted  version  of  the 
death  of  Mason  is  as  follows:  Two  of  his  band,  tempted  by  the 
large  reward,  concerted  a  plan  by  which  they  might  obtain  it. 
An  opportunity  soon  occurred ;  and  while  Mason,  in  company  with 
the  two  conspirators,  was  counting  out  some  ill-gotten  plunder, 
a  tomahawk  was  buried  in  his  brain,  or,  according  to  another,  he 
was  shot,  and  his  severed  head  brought  to  Greenville,  in  Jefferson 
county,  by  the  two  traitors.  As  Circuit  Court  was  in  session  at 
the  time,  they  went  before  the  Judge  to  make  their  affidavit  and 
get  a  certificate  to  the  Governor.  The  head  was  duly  identified 
by  persons  who  knew  Mason  well,  but  before  the  certificate  was 
made  out,  the  two  miscreants  were  recognized  by  two  travelers 
whose  father  they  had  recently  robbed  and  murdered.  They  first 
recognized  the  horses  of  the  two  bandits  at  the  tavern,  where  they 
had  just  alighted,  and  at  once  repaired  to  the  court  house,  identified 
the  men  and  demanded  their  arrest,  declaring  that  they  had  helped 


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MISSISSIPPI  177 

rob  and  murder  their  father  some  two  months  previously  on  the 
Natchez  Trace.  The  prisoners  gave  their  names  as  Sutton  and 
May  and  were  tried,  convicted  and  hung  at  Greenville,  being  pros- 
ecuted by  George  Poindexter,  attorney-general.  The  leader  Mason 
was  now  dead,  together  with  two  of  his  gang;  Harp  had  fled  the 
State,  and  the  disheartened  gang  dispersed,  with  the  result  that 
few  robberies  were  committed  thereafter  in  Mississippi  for  many 
years. 

The  above  account  of  the  death  of  Mason  and  the  dispersal  of 
his  band  is  substantially  corroborated  by  Thomas  Reed,  Esq.,  in 
his  Centennial  history  of  Jeflferson  county  and  by  the  historian, 
Monette.  The  historian,  Claiborne,  seems  to  incline  to  the  belief, 
in  accordance  with  the  testimony  of  Swanay,  above  referred  to, 
that  the  head  brought  to  Greenville  was  not  that  of  Mason  at  all, 
but  that  Mason  and  his  gang,  after  the  governor's  proclamation, 
were  closely  hunted  by  the  whites  and  Indians,  and  after  a  num- 
ber of  narrow  escapes,  made  their  escape  across  the  Mississippi, 
to  somewhere  about  Lake  Providence,  in  the  Spanish  Territory. 
The  account  of  Capt.  W.  L.  Harper,  of  Jefferson  county,  quoted 
by  Claiborne,  is  as  follows:  "Governor  Claiborne  offered  a  large 
reward  for  the  capture  of  Mason,  the  leader  of  the  band  that  in- 
fested the  road.  Mason's  family  then  resided  in  this  county,  not 
far  from  old  Shankstown,  and  his  wife  was  generally  respected  as 
an  honest  and  virtuous  woman,  by  all  her  neighbors,  and  one  of 
her  sons  was  a  worthy  citizen  of  Warren  county  not  many  years 
ago.  The  reward  tempted  two  of  his  band  to  kill  Mason,  or  some 
one  they  said  was  Mason,  and  bring  in  his  head  to  Greenville  for 
recognition.  Many  fully  identified  it  by  certain  marks  thereon, 
except  his  wife,  who  as  positively  denied  it.  The  Governor  had 
sent  his  carriage  for  her  expressly  to  come  down  and  testify.  But 
some  parties  had  recognized  in  the  claimants  two  men  who,  along 
with  Mason,  had  robbed  them  but  a  short  time  before,  when  they 
were  arrested,  tried  and  hung,  thus  getting  their  reward,  but  not 
exactly  in  the  way  they  sought.  They  gave  their  names  as  May 
and  Sutton,  and  many  believed  Mason  fled  the  country  and  died 
in  his  bed  in  Canada." 

January  16,  1804,  George  Poindexter,  attorney-general  of  the 
Territory,  informed  the  acting  governor  that  several  persons  were 
confined  in  the  jail  of  Jefferson  district,  charged  with  capital  of- 
fences in  the  Choctaw  country,  these  persons  being  "notoriously 
confederates  of  Mason's  junta,  who  for  a  length  of  time  have 
infested  the  highway  leading  from  this  Territory  to  the  State  of 
Tennessee."  Poindexter  advised  that  a  special  session  of  oyer 
and  terminer  be  called  to  dispose  of  the  cases.  There  is  on  file 
in  the  Mississippi  Department  of  Archives  and  History  an  inter- 
esting record,  in  French,  of  the  trial  of  Samuel  Mason  for  robbery 
at  New  Madrid  in  January,  1803. 

Mastodon,  a  post-hamlet  of  Panola  county,  situated  on  Indian 
creek,  16  miles  west  of  Sardis,  one  of  the  seats  of  justice  for  the 
county.     Population  in  1900,  45. 

12-11 


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178  MISSISSIPPI 

Mate,  a  postoflSce  of  Lauderdale  county. 

Matherville,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Wayne 
county,  13  miles  north  of  Waynesboro,  the  county  seat.  Popula- 
tion in  1900,  62.  The  town  is  growing  and  has  three  stores,  a 
church,  a  school,  a  cotton  gin,  and  a  saw  mill.  It  lies  in  the  midst 
of  a  prairie  belt.    Population  about  100. 

Mathiston,  an  incorporated  post-town  of  Webster  county,  on  the 
Southern,  and  the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas  City  Ry's,  10  miles 
southeast  of  Walthall,  the  county  seat,  and  8  miles  east  of  Eupora. 
It  has  several  stores,  a  saw  and  planing  mill  plant,  a  handle  factory, 
a  Munger  system  cotton  gin,  two  white  churches,  and  a  bank,  the 
Bank  of  Mathiston,  established  in  1905,  with  $15,000  capital.  The 
Review  is  a  Democratic  weekly,  published  and  edited  by  Chas.  A. 
McClure.  The  town  is  comparatively  new  and  is  growing  rapidly. 
It  has  a  good  school ;  several  fine  brick  business  houses  have  been 
erected  during  the  year  1906.  It  is  surrounded  by  a  fine  agriculture 
district,  cotton  and  corn  being  the  chief  staples.  Its  water  supply 
is  excellent.  The  populatiori  in  1906  was  estimated  at  600.  Three 
rural  mail  routes  emanate  from  Mathiston. 

Mathews,  a  post-hamlet  of  Pontotoc  county,  about  16  miles  from 
Pontotoc,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  19. 

Matthews,  George,  Jr.,  territorial  judge,  commissioned  July  1, 
1805,  was  bom  in  Oglethorpe  county,  Ga.,  the  son  of  General  and 
Governor  George  Matthews,  associated  with  the  history  of  Mis- 
sissippi through  the  Yazoo  land  schemes.  On  account  of  the  storm 
of  protest  against  these  laws,  young  Matthews  was  persuaded  to 
leave  his  native  State,  and  his  appointment  in  Mississippi  seems  to 
have  been  only  preparatory  to  making  his  home  in  Louisiana, 
where  he  was  given  a  Territorial  judgeship,  January  19,  1806.  In 
Louisiana  he  married  a  Miss  Flower,  of  East  Feliciana.  Gov. 
Claiborne  appointed  him  chief  justice  of  the  State  when  it  was  or- 
ganized and  he  gained  distinction  in  this  office. 

Matthews,  Joseph  W.,  was  bom  in  1812,  near  Huntsville,  Ala. 
He  came  to  the  State  as  a  government  surveyor,  and  became  a 
planter  near  the  extinct  town  of  Salem,  living  two  miles  distant,  in 
Marshall  county.  In  1840  he  was  a  member  of  the  lower  house  of 
the  legislature,  and  he  was  in  the  senate  in  1844-48.  In  the  militia 
he  had  the  rank  of  colonel.  He  was  nominated  for  governor  of  the 
State  by  the  Democrats  in  1847,  against  Maj.  A.  B.  Bradford,  a 
hero  of  the  war  then  in  progress,  and  was  elected  by  a  large  ma- 
jority. (See  Brown's  Adm.)  His  simplicity  of  life  was  indicated 
by  the  campaign  names  attached  to  him — "Jo  Salem,"  "Jo,  the 
well-digger."  Reuben  Davis  wrote  of  him:  "He  had  great  prac- 
tical sense,  but  was  neither  brilliant  nor  oratorical.  He  was  pecu- 
liar and  extremely  pleasant.  To  hear  him  speak  was  like  listening 
to  a  well-told  narrative,  and  you  could  almost  suppose  you  were 
listening  to  his  personal  experience  of  public  events,  and  observa- 
tions of  men  and  things.  In  all  this  he  had  the  faculty  of  being 
eamest  and  impressive."  He  died  August  27,  1862,  at  Palmetto, 
Ga.,  on  his  way  to  Richmond,  Va. 


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MISSISSIPPI  179 

M&tthews'  Administration.  The  inaugural  address  of  Governor 
Matthews,  January  10,  1848,  was  mainly  devoted  to  national  poli- 
tics, as  influenced  by  the  war  with  Mexico  and  the  prospect  of 
gaining  new  territory  ftom  that  republic.  (See  Brown's  Adm.) 
He  said: 

"In  the  constitutional  compact  between  the  States,  it  was  ex- 
pressly stipulated  that  new  States  might  be  admitted  into  the 
Union  upon  the  same  footing  with  the  original  States.  The  pro- 
hibition of  slavery  was  not  made  a  condition  of  the  Union  of  the 
original  States,  it  cannot  therefore  be  made  a  condition  of  the  ad- 
mission of  new  States.  So  far  from  the  institution  of  slavery  con- 
stituting an  objection  to  the  union  of  the  original  States,  it  is  ex- 
pressly recognized  by  the  constitution,  and  guarantees  for  its  pro- 
tection w^re  incorporated  into  that  instrument;  for  the  States 
into  which  fugitives  might  fly,  were  bound  to  deliver  them  to 
their  owners,  although  slavery  might  be  prohibited  by  the  laws  of 
such  States.  The  institution  of  slavery  is  a  right  reserved  by  the 
States;  and  if  Congress  refuses  a  new  State  admission  into  the 
Union  within  its  limits,  such  refusal,  in  my  judgment,  will  be  a 
flagrant  disregard  of  the  injunctions  of  the  constitution,  and  an 
abandonment  of  the  compact,  which,  at  present,  and  it  may  be 
fondly  hoped  shall,, to  the  end  of  time,  bind  together  the  States  of 
this  glorious  Union.  Our  present  territory,  or  that  which  may  be 
acquired,  is,  and  will  be,  the  common  property  of  the  United 
States.  To  prohibit  the  citizens  of  one  portion  of  the  Union  from 
inhabiting  such  territory,  without  first  submitting  to  a  disfran- 
chisement of  rights  secured  to  them  by  the  constitution  would  be 
a  palpable  violation  of  that  clause  which  provides  that  'citizens 
of  each  state  shall  be  entitled  to  all  the  privileges  and  immunities 
of  citizens  in  the  several  States.'  This  is  a  momentous  question ; 
one  on  which  is  suspended  the  existence  of  this  happy  confederacy. 
It  is  useless  to  evade  the  question  by  refusing  territorial  indem- 
nity from  Mexico.  It  must  be  met.  We  must  know  whether  the 
compromise  of  the  constitution  are  to  be  respected;  whether  citi- 
zens of  the  slave  States  are  to  be  considered  as  equals  with  their 
northern  brethren,  and  whether  slavery  is  regarded  as  such  a  crime 
that  those  who  hold  this  species  of  property  are  unworthy  of  an 
association  with  the  inhabitants  of  the  free  States.  Experience 
has  proved  that  no  people  have  ever  gained  anything  by  yielding 
to  invasions  of  their  rights,  but,  generally,  in  the  end,  they  lose 
everything;  and  while  I  believe  that  we  should,  in  reference  to  this 
momentous  and  exciting  question,  exercise  moderation;  while  I 
would  appeal  to  the  interest,  the  patriotism  and  the  justice  of  our 
brethren  of  the  free  States,  and  entreat  them  to  pause  and  reflect 
well,  before  they  take  a  step  which  must  result  in  consequences 
appalling  to  the  heart  of  every  patriot ;  yet  I  would  meet  any  and 
all  attempts  to  interfere  with  or  invade  our  constitutional  right« 
with  a  firmness  and  decision  that  should  be  felt  and  respected. 
On  this  subject  they  can  yield,  but  we  cannot.  We  have  no  desire 
to  interfere  with  their  domestic  institutions,  nor  can  we  subpiit  to 


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180  MISSISSIPPI 

their  interference  with  ours.  We  ask  not  that  slavery  shall  exist 
in  a  State,  in  order  to  its  admission  into  the  Union,  but  that  the 
people  of  each  State  shall  establish  such  domestic  institutions  as 
they  may  deem  most  conducive  to  their  interests  and  happiness. 
To  prevent  the  extension  of  slavery  territory,  would  prove  the 
greatest  calamity  to  that  portion  of  population.  If  they  were  lib- 
erated they  could  not  remain  amongst  us.  They  are  prohibited 
from  migrating  to  most  of  the  free  States  and  denied  the  right 
of  citizenship,  I  believe,  in  all.  What,  then,  should  we  do  with 
them?  Soon  their  natural  increase  would  lead,  either  to  their 
extermination,  or  to  the  expulsion  of  the  white  race." 

In  his  message  of  January  26  Governor  Matthews  declared  that 
his  conviction  was  that  "the  State  is  bound  by  every  consideration 
of  good  faith,  justice  and  honor,  to  pay"  the  Planters'  bank  bonds, 
.  which  it  was  proposed  to  repudiate.  He  discussed  and  refuted  the 
argument  that  the  bonds  were  illegal  because  the  legislature  vio- 
lated its  contract  with  the  old  Bank  of  Mississippi^  in  chartering 
the  Planters'  bank.  He  said  that  a  refusal  of  the  State,  now,  to 
pay  these  bonds  "would  consign  the  character  of  the  State  to  in- 
famy and  indelible  disgrace."  As  a  means  of  payment  he  proposed 
"that  we  immediately  bring  into  market  the  500,000  acres  of  land 
granted  by  the  general  government  to  the  State;  and  that  we  shall 
receive  in  payment  for  the  land,  gold,  silver,  auditor's  warrants 
and  bonds  of  the  State  issued  to  take  stock  in  the  Planters  bank 
and  the  coupons  for  interest  on  the  same."  .  .  .  The  amount 
for  which  the  bonds  would  sell  would  of  course  be  placed  to  the 
debit  of  the  State  and  to  the  credit  of  the  internal  improvement 
fund,  bearing  interest  or  not,  as  the  people  might  choose.  .  .  . 
Without  increasing  our  taxes  one  dollar,  we  would  have  the  splen- 
did sum  of  $175,000  annually  at  our  disposal  to  improve  our  fivers, 
make  railroads,  and  all  such  other  improvements  as  the  people 
might  require."  Such  a  law  was  passed.  (See  Banking  and  In- 
ternal Improvement.)  But  of  its  workings  the  Governor  said  in 
1850 :  "The  very  short  crops  of  our  great  staple,  for  the  last  two 
years;  the  extremely  low  price  of  the  same;  the  unprecedented 
overflow  of  the  Mississippi  river,  and  the  prevalence  of  the  cholera, 
with  the  inducements  to  emigration  presented  by  our  immense 
territories  westward,"  had  conspired  to  limit  the  sales  of  public 
lands. 

The  years  1847-50  were  a  period  of  great  prosperity  in  Missis- 
sippi, caused  by  the  jubilant  spirit  that  followed  the  successful 
war  with  Mexico,  carried  forward  and  reinforced  by  the  discovery 
of  gold  in  California.  "All  the  prairie  and  bottom  lands  of  Missis- 
sippi rose  at  once  to  $75  and  $80  an  acre."  The  crops  were  im- 
mense, great  quantities  of  cattle  and  horses  were  raised,  and  there 
was  no  pauper  in  the  land.     (Reuben  Davis.) 

Gov.  Matthews  said  in  his  message  of  January,  1850,  "With  the 
exception  of  cholera,  which  has  merely  touched  the  western  margin 
of  our  State,  an  unusual  degree  of  health  has  been  enjoyed.  .  .  . 
Although  less  propitious  seasons  than  usual  and  low  prices  for 


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MISSISSIPPI  181 

our  staple  have  diminished  the  pecuniary  rewards  of  our  industry, 
yet  no  extensive  embarrassment  exists.  Our  citizens  are  mostly 
free  from  debt;  our  storehouses  abound  with  plenty;  and,  under 
the  benign  influence  of  our  institutions  and  the  guidance  of  a 
beneficent  providence,  our  march  is  onward  and  upward  towards 
prosperity  and  happiness." 

His  summary  of  finances  showed  that  the  assessments  were  a 
little  over  $500,000,  of  which  $100,000  was  assessed  against  the 
United  States  bank  of  Pennsylvania,  the  Commercial  and  Rail- 
road bank  of  Vicksburg  and  the  Bank  of  Vicksburg.  This  $100,- 
000  was  the  subject  of  litigation  and  yet  uncollected.  The  receipts 
from  ordinary  sources  of  revenue  in  1849  were  $358,617,  the  ordi- 
nary current  expense  $139,957.  The  balance  in  the  treasury  Jan- 
uary 1,  1849,  was  $438,667 ;  but  $183,850  of  this  was  due  the  Two 
and  Three  per  cent,  funds,  the  Seminary  and  the  Sinking  funds. 

The  State  officers  ^elected  for  November,  1848  to  November, 
1850,  were,  Samuel  Stamps,  secretary  of  state;  Richard  Griffith, 
treasurer;  George  T.  Swann,  auditor.  John  D.  Freeman  was  at- 
torney-general. 

Notable  events  of  the  administration  were  the  adoption  of  the 
Hutchinson  Code  or  revision  of  statutes ;  the  building  of  the  Jack- 
son and  Brandon  railroad ;  the  advent  of  the  telegraph ;  the  found- 
ing of  the  institute  for  the  blind ;  the  law  for  leasing  the  Chicka- 
saw school  lands;  the  law  for  sale  of  internal  improvement  lands 
to  pay  the  Planters  bank  bonds;  the  election  of  Jefferson  Davis 
to  the  United  States  senate ;  the  Jackson  convention  of  1849. 

A  large  part  of  Governor  Matthews  last  message  was  devoted 
to  the  same  subject  as  his  first  State  paper,  with  this  difference, 
that  the  State  of  California  had  been  organized  by  its  inhabitants; 
and  a  constitution  adopted  prohibiting  slavery.    The  governor  said : 

"In  the  event  of  the  adoption  of  the  Wilmot  proviso,  by  Con- 
gress, or  the  admission  of  California  into  the  Union  by  virtue  of 
her  late  pretended  constitution,  the  abolition  of  slavery  in  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia,  or  the  prohibition  of  the  commerce  in  slaves 
between  the  States,  I  recommend  that  the  Governor  be  authorized 
to  order  an  election  of  delegates  from  all  the  counties  in  the  State, 
to  a  convention  to  take  into  consideration  the  mode  and  measures 
of  redress,  and  to  adopt  such  measures  for  our  future  security  as 
the  crisis  may  demand."     (See  Convention  of  1849.) 

At  the  election  of  1849  Gen.  John  A.  Quitman  was  the  Demo- 
cratic candidate  for  governor,  representing  the  extreme  doctrine 
that  there  was  no  effective  right  anywhere  to  restrict  slavery. 
He  received  33,117  votes  to  22,996  for  the  Whig  candidate,  Luke 
Lea. 

Mattie,  a  hamlet  of  Covington  county,  10  miles  northeast  of  Wil- 
liamsburg, the  county  seat.  The  postoffice  here  has  been  discon- 
tinued, and  mail  now  goes  to  Norfleet. 

Mattox,  a  postoffice  of  Kemper  county,  10  miles  southwest  of 
Dekalb,  the  county  seat. 


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182  MISSISSIPPI 

Mattson,  a  hamlet  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Coahoma  county,  at 
the  junction  of  two  branches  of  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R. 
R.  It  is  10  miles  by  rail  from  Clarksdale,  and  has  a  money  order 
postoffice. 

Maud,  a  postoffice  of  Tunica  county,  on  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi 
Valley  R.  R.,  10  miles  by  rail  south  of  Tunica,  the  county  seat. 

Maxie,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Perry  county, 
at  the  junction  of  the  main  line  of  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.  with 
its  Columbia  branch;  it  is  18  miles  southwest  of  New  Augusta, 
the  county  seat,  and  has  a  money  order  postoffice  and  an  express 
office. 

Maxime,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Bolivar  county, 
on  the  Riverside  division  of  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R., 
12  ihiles  north  of  Greenville,  and  22  miles  by  rail  south  of  Rosedale, 
the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  42. 

Maxwell,  a  post-hamlet  of  Benton  county,  5  miles  northwest  of 
Ashland,  the  county  seat.    Population  in  1900,  49. 

May,  a  postoffice  of  Smith  county. 

Maybell,  a  postoffice  in  the  western  part  of  Jones  county,  situated 
on  Leaf  river,  12  miles  from  Ellisville,  the  county  seat  and  nearest 
railroad  and  banking  town. 

Mayersville,  the  capital  of  Issaquena  county,  is  an  incorporated 
post-town  located  on  the  Mississippi  river,  about  70  miles  north  of 
Vicksburg.  The  nearest  railroad  and  banking  point  is  Rolling  Fork. 
The  town  was  named  for  David  Mayer,  an  extensive  land  owner  in 
the  region  about  Mayersville.  This  section  was  originally  settled 
in  the  early  forties  by  Ambrose  Gipson,  who  bought  a  large  body 
of  land  on  the  river  in  the  northern  portion  of  the  county.  Mayers- 
ville is  an  important  shipping  point,  and  the  region  about  it  pro- 
duces an  enormous  quantity  of  cotton  annually.  It  has  three 
churches,  a  courthouse,  and  one  newspaper,  the  Spectator,  a  Demo- 
cratic weekly  established  in  1887,  edited  by  George  Robinson.  Pop- 
ulation in  1900,  250. 

Mayes,  Daniel,  was  born  February  12,  1792,  in  Didwiddie  county, 
Va. ;  son  of  Robert  Chappell  Mayes  and  Agnes  (Locke)  Mayes: 
His  mother  was  a  daughter  of  Richard  Locke  of  Prince  George 
county,  Va.  Robert  C.  Mayes  was  a  son  of  Matthew  Mayes,  who 
married  Martha  Chappell  of  Prince  George  county.  Matthew 
Mayes,  a  Revolutionary  soldier,  was  a  descendant  of  Rev.  William 
Mayes,  who  immigrated  to  Virginia  in  1611.  The  latter  preached 
at  Kequoghton,  near  Hampton,  and  died  at  Jamestown  about  1665. 
Robert  C.  Mayes  moved  with  his  family  to  Fayette  county,  Ky., 
in  1794,  and  from  that  place  moved  to  Christian  county,  where  he 
died.  Daniel  Mayes  was  educated  in  private  schools,  after  which 
he  read  law  and  began  the  practice  in  Christian  county.  From 
that  place  he  moved  to  Lexington,  Ky.,  and  continued  the  practice 
of  law;  removed  to  Mississippi  and  engaged  in  the  practice  at 
Jackson,  1838-50;  New  Orleans,  1850-52,  and  at  Jackson  again  in 
1852-61.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Kentucky  legislature  in  1826. 
His    opportunity   for    political    advancement    in    Mississippi    was 


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MISSISSIPPI  183 

small,  owing  to  the  fact  that  he  was  a  Whig,  a  minority  party  in 
Mississippi.  In  1846  he  was  a  candidate  for  attorney-general  but 
was  defeated  with  the  party.  He  was  a  close,  personal  friend  of 
Henry  Clay  and  his  ardent  supporter.  His  church  connection  was 
with  the  Christian  Church,  and  during  the  latter  part  of  his  life  he 
preached  lay  sermons.  As  a  lawyer  he  ranked  with  the  ablest  who 
have  honored  the  State.    He  died  at  Jackson,  February  6,  1861. 

Ma]rfield,  a  hamlet  of  Montgomery  county,  16  miles  east  of 
Winona,  the  county  seat.  The  postoffice  here  was  recently  discon- 
tinued and  it  now  has  rural  free  delivery  from  the  station  of  Sibley- 
ton,  on  the  Southern  Ry. 

Mayhew,  an  incorporated  post-town  in  the  northwestern  part  of 
Lowndes  county,  on  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.,  89  miles  north  of 
Meridian,  and  12  miles  west  of  Columbus.  "In  1818,"  says  Clai- 
borne, "under  the  auspices  of  the  American  Presb)rterian  Board  of 
Missions,  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Kingsbury,  Byington,  Gleason,  Hooper, 
Touse,  and  Cushman,  with  their  families,  and  Dr.  Pride  and  Misses 
Bumham,  Foster  and  Thacher,  established  themselves  near  what  is 
now  Mayhew  Station,  on  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.  They  gave  their 
settlement  the  name  of  Mayhew."  It  is  also  known  as  Mayhew's 
Station.    It  has  a  church.    Population  in  1900,  139. 

Mayton,  a  postoffice  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Rankin  county, 
about  20  miles  from  Brandon,  the  county  seat. 

McAdams,  a  post-hamlet  of  Attala  county,  on  the  Aberdeen 
branch  of  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  8  miles  west  of  Kosciusko,  the 
county  seat  and  nearest  banking  town.  Population  in  1900,  16 ;  in 
1906,  it  was  estimated  at  60.  It  has  a  gin,  a  saw  mill  and  a  good 
general  store. 

McBride,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Jefferson 
county,  about  18  miles  from  Fayette,  the  county  seat.  Population 
in  1900,  60. 

McCain,  a  postoffice  of  Webster  county,  situated  on  Sobola  creek, 
an  affluent  of  Yalobusha  river,  6  miles  northwest  of  Walthall,  the 
county  seat. 

McCall  Creek,  a  post-hamlet  of  Franklin  county,  situated  in  the 
eastern  part  of  the  county,  on  the  creek  of  the  same  name,  14  miles 
distant  from  Meadville,  the  county  seat.     Population  in  1900,  25. 

McCallum,  a  postoffice  of  Perry  county,  situated  on  the  Hast- 
chatchee  river,  and  a  station  on  the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas  Qty 
R.  R.,  8  miles  by  rail  south  of  Hattiesburg.  It  has  a  large  saw  mill, 
a  gin  and  a  turpentine  distillery. 

McCardle,  William  H.,  was  a  native  of  Kentucky.  He  came  to 
Mississippi  in  the  early  days;  married  in  Claiborne  county;  was  a 
warm  friend  of  Col.  A.  K.  McClung,  the  noted  duelist;  edited 
papers  at  Vicksburg  and  served  through  the  war  as  a  Confederate. 
After  the  war  he  edited  the  Vicksburg  Times.  Colonel  McCardle 
severely  criticised  the  congressional  plan  of  reconstruction,  which 
Gen.  Ord  was  endeavoring  to  put  in  operation  preparatory  to  the 
re-admission  of  Mississippi  as  a  State  of  the  Union.  He  was  ar- 
rested by  a  squad  of  soldiers,  Nov.  13,  1867,  on  the  general  charge 


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184  MISSISSIPPI 

of  impeding  the  execution  of  the  reconstruction  laws,  and  tried  be- 
fore a  military  court  on  the  specific  charges  of  denouncing  General 
Ord  as  an  usurper  and  despot,  defaming  the  character  of  an  agent 
of  the  Freedmen's  Bureau,  and  advising  voters  to  remain  away 
from  the  polls.  On  application,  a  writ  of  habeas  corpus  was  issued 
by  Judge  Hill  of  the  United  States  court,  who,  upon  a  hearing, 
held  that  the  reconstruction  acts  were  constitutional  and  sustained 
the  action  of  the  commanding  general.  On  appealing  to  the  su- 
preme court  of  the  United  States,  McCardle  was  admitted  to  bail 
and  released  from  custody,  but  before  a  decision  could  be  reached 
congress  passed  an  act  depriving  the  court  of  jurisdiction  in  the 
case.  Col.  McCardle  was  subsequently  associated  with  Gen.  Rob- 
ert Lowry  in  the  authorship  of  a  history  of  Mississippi. 

McCarley,  or  McAnerney  Station,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  eastern 
part  of  Carroll  county,  on  Big  Sandy  creek,  and  a  station  on  the 
Southern  Ry.,  4  miles  distant  from  Carrollton,  the  county  seat  and 
nearest  banking  town.    Population  in  1900,  70. 

McClung,  Alexander  Keith,  was  bom  in  Fauquier  county,  Va. 
His  mother  was  a  sister  of  Chief  Justice  John  Marshall.  He  was 
reared  in  Kentucky  and  educated  for  the  navy,  in  which  he  served 
some  time,  making  several  voyages,  and  fighting  several  duels. 
When  he  came  to  Mississippi  in  1832  he  was  an  exceedingly  hand- 
some young  gentleman  of  twenty-three  years,  with  aristocratic 
tastes,  but  no  great  financial  resources,  it  being  understood  that  he 
had  run  through  with  his  patrimony.  Soon  after  his  arrival  he  was 
Footers  second  in  the  second  Foote-Prentiss  duel,  and  out  of  this 
grew  a  duel  of  his  own,  in  which  he  killed  a  young  man  called 
General  Allen.  A  subsequent  duel  terminated  fatally  to  his  antag- 
onist, Menifee.  "He  was  a  lawyer  by  profession,  and  had  doubtless 
mastered  the  legal  science,"  says  Foote,  "but  had  never  been  much 
concerned  in  practice.  He  was  a  man  of  high  literary  culture  and 
might  be  called  the  ablest  and  most  polished  writer  among  Missis- 
sippians."  One  of  his  peculiarities  was  a  life-long  grudge  against 
Gov.  Alcorn  because  the  latter  was  once  quicker  than  he  in  re- 
senting an  impertinence  to  a  lady.  He  belonged  to  the  aristocratic 
lineage  of  Kentucky;  was  an  athelete,  tall  and  symmetrical;  to  his 
friends  he  was  kind  and  generous.  During  the  Harrison  campaign 
he  supported  the  Whigs  with  a  brilliant  newspaper  at  Jackson, 
"The  Crisis,"  and  again  in  1844  he  published  a  campaign  paper, 
"The  True  Issue,"  and  greatly  strengthened  his  reputation.  It  is 
said  that  Prentiss  quoted  from  him  in  a  speech  without  giving 
credit,  and  the  result  was  an  interview  between  the  two  men  at 
Spengler's,  in  which  serious  results  were  avoided  by  the  tact  and 
good  humor  of  Prentiss.  He  delivered  the  oration  before  the  leg- 
islature upon  the  death  of  Henry  Clay,  a  masterly  effort.  Upon 
the  organization  of  the  regiment  of  Mississippi  Rifles  at  Vicksburg 
in  1846  he  was  elected  lieutenant-colonel,  and  had  command  of  the 
regipient  until  it  was  joined  by  Col.  Jefferson  Davis  at  New  Or- 
leans. (See  Mexican  War.)  On  the  return  of  the  regiment  after 
its  one  year's  service,  he  was  nominated  by  the  Whigs  for  con- 


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MISSISSIPPI  185 

gressman  from  the  second  district.  The  Democrats  nominated  W. 
S.  Featherston,  a  gallant  line  officer  in  the  same  regiment.  "They 
were  both  able  stump  speakers,  fluent,  and  well-informed  upon  the 
political  history  of  the  country ;  and  each  could  point  to  a  record  of 
brilliant  service  on  the  battlefield.  Col.  McClung  had  been  side 
by  side  with  Col.  Jeff  Davis  in  the  splendid  charge  of  the  First 
Mississippi  regiment  at  Monterey,  and  had  been  severely  wounded 
upon  the  walls  of  the  fort.  This  wound  had  confined  him  to  his 
room  for  six  months,  and  he  pointed  to  the  crutches  upon  which 
he  leaned  as  being  in  themselves  sufficient  tokens  of  his  claims 
upon  the  popular  vote,  he  feeling  himself  in  no  wise  inferior  to 
Featherston  in  honesty  or  intellect.  It  was  manifest  that  a  strong 
sympathy  was  everywhere  felt  for  the  crippled  hero,  but  this  was 
overcome  by  the  paramount  consideration  of  individual  loyalty 
to  party,  and  Featherston  was  elected.  Very  possibly  it  is  from 
this  defeat,  which  he  took  much  to  heart,  that  we  may  date  the 
first  symptoms  of  that  deep  melancholy  which  afterward  clouded 
the  noble  spirit  of  McClung,  and  which  culminated  in  the  awful 
tragedy  of  his  self-inflicted  death."  (Reuben  Davis,  Recollec- 
tions.) 

In  the  memorable  political  campaign  of  1851  he  was  conspicuous 
as  a  Unionist.  Afterward,  in  Pierce's  administration,  when  some 
frontier  regiments  were  organized,  he  sought  a  commission,  and 
upon  being  thwarted  in  this  hope,  being  deeply  in  debt  to  his 
friends,  he  ended  his  life  by  suicide.  (For  McClung  as  an  orator 
see  Rowland,  Vol.  IV.,  P.  M.  H.  S.  page  376.) 

McComb,  a  city  of  Pike  county,  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R., 
and  at  the  junction  of  the  Liberty-White  R.  R.,  8  miles 
north  of  Magnolia,  the  county  seat,  105  miles  distant  from 
New  Orleans,  and  78  miles  south  of  Jackson.  The  town  was 
named  for  a  former  owner  of  the  Mississippi  Central,  now  the 
Illinois  Central  R.  R.  It  is  in  the  heart  of  the  pine  district, 
is  possessed  of  a  highly  equable  climate,  adapted  to  the  pro- 
duction of  all  the  vegetables  and  fruits  of  this  zone.  It  has 
fine  educational  and  religious  advantages,  and  is  an  important 
shipping,  commercial  and  manufacturing  point.  Fruits  and  vege- 
tables are  shipped  from  here  in  large  quantities  to  the  Chicago  and 
other  northern  markets.  The  Illinois  Central  R.  R.  maintains  here 
the  largest  and  most  complete  railroad  shops  within  the  State,  and 
employs  a  large  number  of  men  in  building  and  repairing  cars  and 
locomotives.  The  town  is  possessed  of  two  banking  institutions, 
with  a  total  invested  capital  of  $150,000,  has  three  hotels,  an  excel- 
lent system  of  water  works,  an  electric  lighting  and  power  plant, 
six  educational  institutions  and  nine  churches.  There  are  three 
public  schools,  a  business  college,  a  convent  and  a  female  college ; 
the  churches  consist  of  an  Episcopal,  Roman  Catholic,  Presbyterian, 
Christian,  two  Methodist  and  three  Baptist.  Among  the  manufac- 
turing enterprises  now  in  the  city  are  cotton  mills,  a  saw  mill, 
planing  mill,  brick  yard,  ice  factory,  bottling  works,  a  steam  laundry, 
machine  shops,  car  shops,  and  cotton  gins.    Two  newspapers  are 


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186  MISSISSIPPI 

published  here,  the  Enterprise,  a  Democratic  weekly  established  in 
1889,  edited  by  R.  B.  May,  and  the  McComb  City  Journal,  a  Demo- 
cratic weekly  edited  and  published  by  R.  T.  Quin  and  Ellis  Hays. 

The  total  city  indebtedness  in  1906  was  >85,000 ;  the  assessed  val- 
uation of  the  real  property-  was  $1,265,333 ;  personal,  $487,919 ;  tax 
rate,  12  mills.  The  population  in  1900  was  recorded  at  4,477;  in 
1890  it  was  2,383.  TTie  city  is  growing  rapidly  and  the  estimated 
population  in  1906  was  between  6,000  and  7,000. 

McCondy,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Chickasaw 
county,  10  miles  southeast  of  Houston,  the  county  seat.  The  nearest 
banking  town  is  Houston,  13  miles  to  the  northwest.  Population 
in  1900,  62. 

McCbol»  an  incorporated  post-town  in  the  northeastern  part  of 
Attala  county,  is  a  thriving  little  station  on  the  Aberdeen  division 
of  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  18  miles  by  rail  northeast  of  Kos- 
ciusko, the  county  seat,  and  14  miles  southwest  of  Ackerman.  The 
Bank  of  McCool,  a  branch  of  the  Grenada  Bank,  is  located  here. 
The  town  was  named  for  the  Hon.  James  F.  McCool,  Chancellor  of 
the  6th  Chancery  court  district  of  Mississippi,  and  former  speaker 
of  the  house  of  representatives  in  the  Mississippi  legislature.  Pop- 
ulation in  1900,  317 ;  the  population  in  1906  was  estimated  at  400. 

McCoy,  a  hamlet  of  Pearl  river  county.  The  postofficc  has  been 
discontinued  at  this  place,  and  mail  now  goes  to  Poplarville. 

McCrary,  a  postoffice  in  the  eastern  part  of  Lowndes  county,  on 
the  Mobile  &  Ohio  R.  R.,  8  miles  east  of  Columbus,  the  county  seat. 

McDill,  a  postoffice  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Scott  county,  12 
miles  distant  from  Forest,  the  county  seat.  Lake  is  its  nearest 
railroad  and  banking  town. 

McDonalds  Mills,  a  postoffice  in  the  northern  part  of  Periy 
county,  14  miles  from  New  Augusta,  the  county  seat.  Richton  is 
the  nearest  banking  town. 

McGehee,  Edward,  was  born  at  Oglethorpe,  Ga.,  November  18, 
1786,  and  reared  on  his  father's  plantation  in  that  State.  He  came 
to  Mississippi  in  a  flatboat  from  Wheeling  about  1808;  built  a 
log  house  in  Wilkinson  county ;  went  to  Georgia  and  married  Mar- 
garet L.  Crosby  in  1811,  and  returned  to  Mississippi  on  horseback 
with  his  bride.  Mr.  McGehee  pushed  to  completion  the  West 
Feliciana  railroad,  which  cost  $35,000  per  mile.  It  reached  Wood- 
ville  about  1837  and  was  the  first  road  in  the  State  and  fifth  in 
the  United  States.  He  became  the  owner  of  the  road  after  the 
war.  He  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Woodville  Bank,  and  of 
one  of  the  first  cotton  factories  in  the  State  about  1849 ;  purchased 
the  plant  and  operated  it  until  it  was  burned  by  the  Federals  dur- 
ing the  war.  He  founded  Bethel  church  in  1811 ;  founded  Wood- 
ville Female  Academy,  which  was  burned  in  1849;  founded  the 
present  college  for  gfirls  at  Woodville ;  gave  large  sums  to  churches 
and  colleges  in  Mississippi  and  Louisiana.  He  shunned  public  of- 
fice, but  was  induced  to  serve  a  few  terms  in  the  legislature.  He 
declined  to  accept  the  position  of  secretary  of  the  treasury  offered 
him  by  President  Zachary  Taylor ;  was  the  administrator  of  Pres- 


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MISSISSIPPI  187 

ident  Taylor  and  filled  many  places  of  trust.  He  was  very  pros- 
perous as  a  planter ;  his  fields  stretched  out  as  wide  as  a  feudal 
estate,  while  his  servants  numbered  more  than  a  thousand.  His 
residence,  Bowling  Green,  built  of  brick  with  massive  pillars  in 
1825,  at  great  cost,  was  one  of  the  most  attractive  in  the  South. 
It  contained  thousands  of  books,  but  was  burned  with  its  contents 
by  a  negro  regiment  after  the  war.  He  was  in  favor  of  negro 
colonization  in  Africa,  ?ind,  before  the  war,  seriously  thought  of 
planting  a  colony  of  his  own  servants  in  that  country.  He  died 
October  1,  1880,  aged  ninety-four. 

McHcnry,  a  post-village  of  Harrison  county,  on  the  Gulf  &  Ship 
Island  R.  R.,  25  miles  north  of  Gulfport.  It  is  situated  in  the  long 
leaf  yellow  pine  region,  and  lumbering  and  farming  are  the  chief 
industries  of  the  locality.  It  has  several  good  stores  and  churches, 
a  splendid  school,  a  bank  and  a  newspaper  office.  The  State  Bank 
was  established  here  in  1902  with  a  capital  of  $15,000 ;  the  News  is 
a  local  weekly,  owned  and  edited  by  Oscar  Grace,  established  in 
1901.  It  has  a  large  planing  mill  and  brick  yard.  Population  in 
1900,  360 ;  estimated  in  1906  to  be  1,200. 

Mclvor,  a  postoffice  in  the  central  part  of  Panola  county,  and  a 
station  on  the  Sardis  &  Delta  R.  R.,  6  miles  west  of  Sardis,  one  of 
the  county  seats  of  justice  and  the  nearest  banking  town. 

McKenna,  Constantine.  One  of  the  Irish  priests  sent  over  from 
the  college  of  Salamanca  in  1787  to  convert  and  hold  the  English 
in  West  Florida.  He  began  to  be  "cura  parroco"  at  Mobile,  in 
December,  1789,  and  he  "is  probably  the  best  known  of  the  Spanish 
priests."  (Hamilton,  Colonial  Mobile.)  The  testimony  taken  in 
proof  of  the  death  of  Sainneville  LeDuc  from  fever  at  the  home  of 
John  Girault  in  October,  1788,  shows  that  Constantine  McKenna 
was  the  priest  who  administered  the  last  unction.  Gregory  White 
was  also  connected  with  the  religious  establishment. 

McLain,  a  hamlet  on  the  western  border  of  Greene  county,  and 
a  station  on  the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas  City  R.  R.,  18  miles 
west  of  Leakesville,  the  county  seat.  It  has  a  money  order  post- 
office. 

McLain,  Frank  Alexander,  of  Gloster,  the  representative  of 
the  Seventh  Mississippi  district  in  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States,  was  born  on  a  farm  near  Liberty  in  Amite  county.  Miss., 
on  January  29, 1852,  a  son  of  Enoch  Bateman  and  Nancy  (Berryhill) 
McLain.  His  ancestors  were  originally  natives  of  Scotland,  the  first 
family  to  leave  that  country  immigrating  to  Robeson  county  in 
North  Carolina  in  1776.  Subsequently,  in  1803,  the  branch  to  which 
Congressman  McLain  belongs  removed  to  Tennessee  and  in  1812 
to  Amite  county.  Miss.  Enoch  Bateman  McLain  was  a  member  of 
Gen.  Nathan  B.  Forrest's  cavalry  of  the  Confederate  army  in  the 
Civil  War,  and  since  the  close  of  that  struggle  has  been  engaged  in 
planting  and  mercantile  business.  The  subject  of  this  sketch  at- 
tended the  public  schools  of  Amite  county  and  for  a  year  was  a 
student  at  the  Woodlawn  institute  in  the  East  Feliciana  Parish, 
La.,  under  the  instruction  of  Rev.  Mr.  Relyes  and  Rev.  Samuel  H. 


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188  MISSISSIPPI 

Hayden.  He  then  matriculated  at  the  University  of  Mississippi  and 
was  graduated  at  that  institution  in  1874  with  the  de^ee  of  Bach- 
elor of  Arts.  From  1875  to  1879  he  was  a  teacher  m  the  public 
schools  of  the  state,  devoting  his  spare  moments  of  those  years  to 
the  study  of  law.  In  September,  1879,  he  was  admitted  to  practice 
in  the  courts  of  the  state  and  began  the  practice  of  his  profession  at 
Liberty.  In  1885  he  removed  to  Gloster.  In  politics  Mr.  McLain  is 
a  Democrat  and  as  such  was  elected  in  1881  for  a  term  of  two 
years  as  the  representative  of  Amite  county  in  the  lower  house  of 
the  state  legislature,  and  upon  the  expiration  of  his  term  in  that 
office  he  was  elected  district  attorney  for  his  judicial  district  and  was 
twice  re-elected,  serving  continuously  from  January,  1884,  to  Jan- 
uary, 1896.  In  the  latter  year  he  voluntarily  resigned  his  office  to 
continue  private  practice  in  Gloster.  When  the  Constitutional  con- 
vention of  1890  met  he  was  one  of  the  Floater  delegates,  having  been 
elected  to  represent  Amite  and  Pike  counties.  He  was  nommated 
by  the  executive  committee  to  fill  out  the  unexpired  term  in  Con- 
gress of  the  late  Hon.  William  Franklin  Love  and  was  elected  with- 
out opposition.  He  has  been  re-elected  at  every  successive  election 
since  that  time.  In  religious  aflfairs  Mr.  McLain  is  a  member  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  church  and  in  a  fraternal  way  is  identified  with 
the  Knights  of  Pythias.  On  March  6,  1879,  at  Magnolia,  Miss.,  he 
was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Fannie  Ann  Tyler,  daughter  of 
William  G.  and  Lindsay  (Connally)  Tyler,  of  Tylertown.  Mrs. 
McLain  died  at  Washington,  D.  C,  March  13,  1900,  leaving  besides 
her  husband  three  children — Mary  (McLain)  Hines,  Enoch  Bate- 
man  and  William  Tyler. 

McLaurin,  a  post-village  of  Perry  county,  on  the  Gulf  &  Ship 
Island  R.  R.,  about  12  miles  south  of  Hattiesburg.  It  was  named 
for  Gen.  McLaurin,  the  first  president  of  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island 
R.  R.    Population  in  1900,  300. 

McLaurin,  Anselm Joseph, United  States  senator  from  Mississippi, 
ex-governor  of  the  state  and  one  of  the  distinguished  members  of 
the  bar  of  this  commonwealth,  has  left  an  indelible  impress  upon  the 
annals  of  his  native  state  in  both  a  public  and  civic  way,  while  his 
influence  in  the  broad  field  of  national  legislation  has  been  exerted 
with  such  consummate  discrimination  and  fidelity  as  to  cause  addi- 
tional honor  to  mark  his  career  and  to  incidentally  touch  the  state 
which  has  honored  him  with  offices  of  so  distinctive  trust  and  re- 
sponsibility. Senator  McLaurin  maintains  his  home  in  the  attractive 
little  town  of  Brandon,  Rankin  county,  and  here  he  was  born  on 
March  26, 1848,  being  a  son  of  Lauchlin  and  Ellen  Caroline  (Tullus) 
McLaurin,  the  former  of  whom  was  bom  in  Marlborough  district 
of  South  Carolina,  where  his  parents  located  upon  their  immigra- 
tion from  Scotland,  while  his  wife  was  born  in  Simpson  county. 
Miss.,  and  was  reared  on  a  farm  in  Smith  county.'  Her 
maternal  grandfather,  John  London,  was  a  valiant  soldier  in 
the  Continental  line  during  the  War  of  the  Revolution.  When  a 
young  man  Lauchlin  McLaurin  removed  to  Smith  county.  Miss., 
where  he  became  the  owner  of  a  large  and  valuable  plantation  and 


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MISSISSIPPI  189 

held  precedence  as  one  of  the  influential  citizens  of  that  section  of 
the  state,  having  represented  his  county  in  the  state  legislature  sev- 
eral terms.  The  future  governor  and  United  States  senator  was  the 
eldest  in  a  family  of  eight  sons,  and  it  may  be  said  that  all  are  to- 
day well  known  and  honored  citizens  of  Mississippi.  Anselm  J. 
received  his  preliminary  educational  training  in  the  best  schools 
of  his  native  county  and  then. continued  his  studies  in  Summerville 
institute,  in  Noxubee  county,  which  was  at  that  time  one  of  the 
leading  educational  institutions  of  the  state.  Here  he  was  a  member 
of  the  junior  class  of  1867.  During  the  latter  portion  of  his  col- 
legiate course  he  also  prosecuted  the  study  of  law  under  the  effective 
preceptorship  of  Proiessor  Puttick,  showing  marked  power  of  as- 
similation and  thoroughly  grounding  himself  in  the  minutiae  of 
the  science  of  jurisprudence,  so  that  he  secured  admission  to  the  bar 
of  his  native  state  in  1868  at  Raleigh,  Smith  county.  In  that  place 
he  engaged  in  the  active  practice  of  his  profession,  while  his  energy 
and  talent  were  sufficiently  potent  to  make  his  novitiate  of  com- 
paratively brief  duration;  he  soon  built  up  an  excellent  practice, 
his  clientage  being  of  representative  order  and  he  came  into  prom- 
inence in  public  and  civic  affairs  in  an  incidental  way.  In  1871  he 
was  elected  district  attorney  for  the  fifth  judicial  district,  proving  an 
able  prosecutor  and  serving  four  years.  He  then,  in  1876,  removed 
to  Brandon,  where  he  has  since  maintained  his  home  and  where 
his  labors  in  his  profession  have  brought  to  him  distinction  as  one 
of  the  leading  members  of  the  bar  of  Mississippi.  He  has  gained 
distinctive  prestige  as  a  criminal  lawyer  and  has  been  identified  with 
some  of  the  most  important  causes  presented  in  the  Federal  and 
state  courts.  He  is  a  man  of  high  scholarship  and  is  especially  well 
versed  in  the  learning  of  the  law,  while  his  powers  as  a  trial  lawyer 
are  of  most  brilliant  order  and  have  been  shown  in  their  full  strength 
in  many  a  sternly  contested  case,  while  his  services  as  a  public 
speaker  have  been  in  much  demand,  especially  in  the  realm  of  prac- 
tical politics.  In  1879  he  was  elected  to  represent  Rankin  county  in 
the  state  legfislature,  making  an  excellent  record  in  the  connection 
and  being  elected  as  representative  from  the  state  at  large  in  1880 
and  presidential  elector  for  state  at  large  in  1888.  In  1890  he  was  a 
delegate  to  the  state  constitutional  convention,  and  was  one  of  its 
most  prominent  and  active  members.  In  February,  1894,  he  was 
elected  to  the  United  States  senate,  but  in  the  following  year  retired 
therefrom,  having  been  honored  with  election  to  the  office  of  gov- 
ernor of  Mississippi,  in  which  capacity  he  served  four  years,  giving 
one  of  the  most  independent,  duly  conservative  and  businesslike 
administrations  the  state  has  yet  had.  In  January,  1900,  there  came 
to  Governor  McLaurin  the  further  distinction  of  being  again  chosen 
to  represent  his  state  in  the  United  States  senate,  and  he  was  re- 
elected, his  present  term  to  expire  on  March  4,  1913.  His  able  ser- 
vices in  the  senate  are  matters  of  record  and  need  no  special  words 
of  commendation  in  this  connection,  while  the  continuation 
of  his  tenure  of  office  indicates  the  estimate  placed  upon 
liis    labors    by    his    fellow    citizens.     He    is    one    of    the  leaders 


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190  MISSISSIPPI 

in  the  ranks  of  the  Mississippi  Democracy  and  the  cause  of 
the  party  has  ever  found  in  him  a  most  loyal  and  aggressive  advo- 
cate and  supporter.  In  a  fraternal  way  the  Senator  is  identified 
with  the  Masonic  order,  the  Knights  of  Honor,  the  Knights  of 
Pythias  and  the  United  Confederate  Veterans.  His  eligibility  for 
membership  in  the  last  mentioned  organization  is  predicated  from 
his  having  served  as  a  member  of  Company  K,  Third  Mississippi 
cavalry,  during  the  last  few  months  of  the  Civil  War,  his  fealty  to 
the  Confederacy  being  of  the  most  unequivocal  order.  Both  he  and 
his  wife  are  members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church.  South. 
On  Feb.  22,  1870,  Senator  McLaurin  was  united  in  marriage  to 
Miss  Laura  Rauch,  who  was  born  in  South  Carolina  and  reared 
in  Smith  county,  Miss.,  being  a  daughter  of  John  and  Epsilon 
(Roberts)  Rauch.  Senator  and  Mrs.  McLaurin  have  ten  children, 
namely:  Stella  May,  Delta  Epsilon,  Daisy  Ellen,  Laura  Fostina, 
Mary  Louise,  Irene  Catherine,  Anselm  Joseph,  Jr.,  Sallia  C,  Jean 
Wallace  and  Laura  Rauch. 

McLaurin's  Administration  (1896-1900).  Governor  A.  J.  Mc- 
Laurin was  inaugurated  January  21,  1896.  The  State  officers 
elected  in  1895  were  J.  H.  Jones,  lieutenant-governor ;  J.  L.  Power, 
secretary  of  State ;  W.  D.  Holder,  auditor ;  A.  Q.  May,  treasurer ; 
A.  A.  Kincannon,  superintendent  of  public  education;  E.  W. 
Brown,  clerk  of  the  supreme  court;  Wiley  N.  Nash,  attorney- 
general;  John  M.  Simonton,  land  commissioner;  J.  J.  Evans,  M.  M. 
Evans,  J.  D.  Mclnnis,  railroad  commissioners;  Wirt  Adams, 
State  revenue  agent. 

In  his  inaugural  address  Governor  McLaurin  discussed  the 
struggle  of  people  in  all  times  to  be  free  from  social  oppression 
and  usurpations,  as  manifested  in  revolt  against  tyranny  and  spe- 
cial privilege.  If  there  were  a  live  interest  in  government  and 
law  by  every  citizen,  he  said,  "We  need  not  give  ourselves  con- 
cern about  the  growth  of  our  wealth  or  the  prospect  of  our  pros- 
perity. We  need  not  give  ourselves  alarm  about  the  building  of 
railroads  and  factories  or  the  developing  of  the  slumbering  re- 
sources of  the  State.  Among  the  acts  of  the  legislature  was  a  bill 
exempting  from  taxation  for  ten  years  all  permanent  factories  and 
plants  of  the  sort  named  therein,  that  should  be  established  before 
January  1,  1906.  The  sale  of  bonds  for  $400,000  and  a  State  tax 
levy  of  6  mills  was  considered  sufficient  provision  for  the  financial 
situation  of  the  treasury,  which  was  practically  without  funds  and 
carrying  a  temporary  loan  of  $150,000.  But  in  the  last  six  months 
of  the  same  year,  the  treasury  had  no  funds  to  pay  warrants.  The 
governor  called  a  meeting  of  the  State  officers  and  presiding 
officers  of  the  legislature,  and  was  advised  to  call  a  special  session 
of  the  legislature.  He  felt  that  he  had  no  authority  to  borrow 
money.  When  the  legislature  met  in  January,  1897,  he  made  an 
able  statement  of  4he  financial  condition,  showing  that  the  re- 
ceipts of  the  fiscal  year,  1895-96  had  been  $1,777,586,  including  the 
proceeds  of  the  bonds,  and  the  current  expenditures  had  been 
$1,759,769.     He  added:     "The  people  of  the  State  of  Mississippi 


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have  the  property,  real  and  personal,  upon  which  to  base  credit, 
and  there  is  no  good  reason  why  the  credit  of  the  State  should  not 
be  as  good  as  that  of  the  United  States."  He  recommended  an 
ad  valorem  tax  sufficient  to  defray  the  general  expenses  of  the 
State  government,  and  a  special  fund  for  the  common  schools, 
composed  of  the  ad  valorem  tax  and  the  privilege  taxes,  the  entire 
school  appropriation  to  be  distributed  in  January,  to  stop  the 
system  of  deficit  in  school  resources.  The  legislature  authorized 
the  governor  to  obtain  a  temporary  loan  of  $200,000,  raised  the 
State  tax  levy  half  a  mill,  and  became  involved  with  the  governor 
in  a  dispute  regarding  the  plans  for  building  a  new  capitol,  that 
resulted  in  his  veto  of  the  bill  adopted.    (See  Capitol,  New.) 

In  1897  the  revenue  agent  began  suit  against  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral, and  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  valley  railroad  companies  for  back 
taxes  of  about  $750,000  which  the  companies  claimed  exemption 
from  by  their  charters.  In  discussing  the  subject  in  his  message 
of  1898  Governor  McLaurin  advised  the  repeal  of  such  exemptions. 
"I  would  not  have  the  State  break  faith  with  any  one  with  whom 
it  deals,  whether  the  most  opulent  railroad  company  or  the  hum- 
blest and  poorest  individual.  It  cannot  break  faith  with  any  one 
and  preserve  its  honor  untarnished.  While  this  is  so,  it  is  true 
that  it  is  the  duty  of  the  State — ^just  as  sacred — to  see  that  the 
rich  and  powerful  bear  their  lawful  and  just  share  of  the  expenses 
of  the  government,  and  that  they  be  not  permitted  to  shift  the 
burden  of  their  taxes  on  to  the  poor  and  weak."  The  repeal  was 
made  and  sustained  by  the  supreme  courts  of  the  State  and 
United  States.  In  1897  the  penitentiary  convicts  were  employed 
for  a  tfme  on  the  Mississippi  levees,  in  danger  from  high  water. 
There  was  a  falling  oflF  in  the  price  of  cotton  in  1897  that  reduced 
the  returns  of  agriculture  about  $15,000,000.  The  condition  of 
the  treasury  was  much  improved  in  the  years  1898-99,  and  the 
administration  closed  with  a  large  balance  in  the  treasury.  (See 
Finances.) 

In  1897,  1898  and  1899  the  State  was  again  visited  by  yellow 
fever  epidemics,  and  business  was  checked  by  the  quarantine  reg- 
ulations, but  a  recurrence  of  the  disastrous  days  of  1878  was  pre- 
vented. During  this  administration  both  Senators  George  and 
Walthall  died  while  in  office.  Mississippi  sent  to  the  Spanish- 
American  war  in  1898  two  regiments,  a  battalion,  and  part  of  the 
5th  Immune  infantry  regiment.  (See  Spanish  War.)  The  Demo- 
cratic convention  in  1899  nominated  a  ticket  headed  by  A.  H. 
Longino  for  governor  and  the  Peoples  party  nominated  a  ticket 
headed  by  Dr.  R.  K.  Prewitt.  The  Republican  party  made  no 
nominations.  The  vote  was,  Longino,  42,273;  Prewitt,  6,007.  An 
amendment  to  the  constitution,  making  the  judges  of  all  the 
courts  elective,  was  voted  upon  at  this  election,  but,  as  subse- 
quently decided  by  the  supreme  court,  did  not  receive  a  consti- 
tutional majority.     (See  Judiciary.) 


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McLeody  a  post-hamlet  of  Noxubee  county,  8  miles  east  of  Macon, 
the  county  seat,  and  the  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town.  Pop- 
ulation in  1900,  20. 

McMurran,  John  T.,  an  eminent  lawyer,  was  a  native  of  Penn- 
sylvania, who  read  law  with  his  uncle.  Judge  Thompson,  of  Chilli- 
cothe,  Ohio,  and  came  to  Natchez  with  a  letter  of  introduction  to 
John  A.  Quitman,  about  1828.  After  the  death  of  W.  B.  Griffith 
be  became  the  law  partner  of  Gen.  Quitman,  and  surpassed  the 
latter  in  professional  ability.  Mr.  McMurran  married  a  daughter 
of  Chief  Justice  Turner.    He  never  embarked  in  politics. 

McNair,  a  post-village  in  the  southern  part  of  JeflFerson  county, 
on  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  4  miles  south  of  Fayette, 
the  county  seat  and  nearest  banking  town.  This  is  one  of  the 
oldest  settled  sections  of  the  State,  and  was  known  in  the  early 
history  of  the  county  as  the  Scotch  settlement,  where  Gaelic  was 
long  the  prevailing  language.    Population  in  1900,  250. 

McNeill,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Pearl  River  county, 
12  miles  south  of  Poplarville,  the  county  seat  and  nearest  banking 
town.  It  is  a  station  on  the  New  Orleans  &  North  Eastern  R.  R., 
and  has  a  money  order  postoffice  and  an  express  office.  A  branch 
of  the  A.  &  M.  College  Experiment  Station  is  located  here.  The 
population  in  1906  was  estimated  at  250. 

McNutt.  This  old  town  was  the  first  county  seat  of  Sunflower 
county  when  that  county  was  created  in  J844.  It  took  its  name 
from  the  little  lake  on  which  it  is  located,  and  the  lake  is  said  to 
have  been  named  in  honor  of  Governor  Alexander  G.  McNutt.  The 
first  public  building  in  the  town  was  a  rude  log  courthouse  and 
jail.  Afterwards  a  frame  building  was  erected  to  take  its  place, 
and  in  1858,  a  fine  brick  courthouse  was  built.  The  act  which 
created  the  county  of  Leflore  out  of  part  of  Sunflower  county  in 
1871,  directed  that  the  county  records,  together  with  the  buildings 
and  grounds  at  McNutt,  now  in  Leflore  county,  should  become  the 
property  of  the  new  county  of  Leflore.  Greenwood,  12  miles  to  the 
southeast,  became  the  county  seat  of  Leflore  and  the  county  build- 
ings at  McNutt  were  sold  and  became  private  property.  The  brick 
court  house  was  used  successively  as  a  school  building,  a  Masonic 
hall,  and  a  Methodist  church  and  parsonage.  In  the  year  1901, 
it  passed  into  the  possession  of  Mr.  C.  M.  Dixon.  The  old  cemetery, 
two  churches,  and  a  few  other  buildings  still  survive  to  mark  the 
site  of  the  old  town,  and  it  is  still  a  postoffice.  Its  population  in 
1900  was  62. 

The  pioneers  of  the  town  were  Randall  Bluett,  Thomas  Randle, 
Eli  Ethridge,  Hezekiah  McNabb  and  Ben  Jones,  planters.  A  few 
years  later,  the  following  men  became  residents  of  McNutt :  Daniel 
Pond,  T.  G.  Ellesberry,  J.  W.  Gleason,  farmers ;  D.  A.  Outlaw,  H. 

S.  Smith,  Lightfoot,  lawyers;  Drs.  Rutledge  and  Lovelady, 

physicians.     (See  Dr.  F.  L.  Riley's  Extinct  Towns  and  Villages). 

McNutt,  Alexander  G.,  governor  of  Mississippi,  1838-42,  was 
born  in  Rockbridge  county,  Va.,  in  1801 ;  was  graduated  at  old 
Washington  college;   moved  to  Mississippi   in   1824,  and  settled 


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MISSISSIPPI  193 

with  the  intention  to  practice  law  at  the  town  of  Jackson,  just 
founded,  but  soon  changed  his  residence  to  the  equally  young  and 
more  promising  village  of  Vicksburg.  In  this  early  period  he  was 
slovenly  in  habit  and  addicted  to  the  common  vice  of  intemperance 
in  such  a  degree  that  only  his  genuine  force  of  mind  sustained 
him  in  popular  esteem.  Henry  S.  Foote,  an  enemy,  writes  that  he 
made  his  acquaintance  in  1831,  and  learned  that  he  had  little  suc- 
cess as  a  lawyer,  but  had  made  considerable  money  as  collector 
of  accounts  for  the  wealthy  retired  merchant,  Mr.  Huff. 

With  this  start  he  became  a  partner  as  a  planter  with  Joel  S. 
Cameron,  whose  murder,  by  his  slaves,  was  a  great  sensation 
about  1833.  This  fatality  was  followed  in  seven  months  by  the 
marriage  of  McNutt  to  his  partner's  widow.  She  was  Elizabeth 
Lewis,  a  native  of  Mississippi,  and  a  lady  of  notable  beauty.  Foote 
says  that  in  1831  McNutt,  while  attending  court  at  Natchez,  was 
slapped  in  the  face,  in  the  course  of  argument,  by  Joseph  Smith, 
and,  in  confusion  of  mind,  let  it  pass  without  retaliation.  This 
was  a  fatal  error,  according  to  the  social  code  of  that  time,  but 
this  seems  to  have  made  no  difference  with  McNutt.  He  was 
elected  to  the  state  senate  in  1835,  pledged  to  support  Poindexter 
for  the  United  States  senate.  At  the  session  of  1837  he  was  elected 
president.  In  the  legislature  he  took  an  extreme  part  against  the 
banks  and  by  reason  of  this  secured  a  nomination  for  governor  in 
1837  by  the  ultra  opponents  of  the  bank  privileges.  McNutt  was 
said  by  his  opponents  to  be  a  Bentonian,  an  agrarian,  a  demo- 
gogue,  "the  Humbug  candidate,"  and  accused  of  sympathy  with 
the  sentiment,  "Down  with  the  banks;  Give  us  gold."  Foote  en- 
tered the  campaign  against  him,  and  indulged  in  some  bitter  per- 
sonalities. There  were  two  Democratic  and  two  Whig  candidates 
in  the  field ;  but  one  of  the  Democratic  candidates  died  during  the 
canvass,  and  McNutt  was  elected.  In  1839  he  was  reelected.  A 
year  or  two  after  the  close  of  his  term  he  made  a  canvass  of  the 
State  as  a  candidate  for  the  United  States  senate,  making  about 
a  hundred  speeches,  of  considerable  length,  followed  in  each  in- 
stance by  Henry  S.  Foote,  who  was  his  nemesis  in  behalf  of  the 
banks.  The  result  was  that  though  he  obtained  20  votes  in  the 
legislature  for  senator,  a  larger  number  were  divided  between 
Foote,  Quitman,  Thompson  and  Brown,  and  finally  Foote  was 
elected.  Mr.  McNutt  then  returned  to  private  life.  He  was  can- 
vassing the  State  as  a  candidate  for  presidential  elector  in  1848, 
when  he  died,  after  an  illness  of  a  few  days,  at  Cockrum's  Cross- 
roads, De  Soto  county,  October  22.  The  striking  feature  of  his 
career  is  his  great  fight  against  the  corruption,  which  permeated 
the  entire  fabric  of  Mississippi  banking  institutions.  He  was 
charged  with  causing  the  failure  of  the  banks  by  his  attacks  upon 
them;  but  it  is  evident  that  his  exposure  of  their  rottenness  was 
proper  and  their  collapse  was  inevitable. 

His  efforts  at  reform  were  not  confined  to  banks  and  public  of- 
ficials. In  1839  he  advised  the  legislature:  "A  tax  fee  of  one 
hundred  dollars   for   each    conviction   would   soon   drive  the  faro 

13-11 


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194  MISSISSIPPI 

dealers  from  the  purlieus  of  the  capitol  and  from  the  towns  and 
villages  which  they  have  been  so  long  robbing."  Reuben  Davis 
says  (Recollections,  p.  84),  "In  some  respects  he  was  the  most 
remarkable  man  I  ever  knew.  It  was  not  because  he  could  debate 
with  great  force  and  speak  with  captivating  oratory.  Many  of 
his  contemporaries  could  compete  with  him  on  the  rostrum,  al- 
though he  was  admitted  to  be  one  of  the  best  speakers  of  a  time 
singularly  fertile  in  such  talent.  Two  qualities  marked  him  out 
as  an  individual  type  entirely  distinct  from  the  class  of  speakers 
and  thinkers  to  which  he  belonged.  The  first  was  a  matchless 
ingenuity  in  spinning  a  web  of  sophistry,  more  consistent,  more 
plausible,  and  more  like  truth  than  the  honest  truth  itself.  He 
could  take  any  question,  and  so  change  and  mould  and  adorn  it 
that  the  most  subtle  intellect  should  fail  to  detect  the  falsehood." 
He  also  had  a  remarkable  power  of  ignoring  the  "code  of  honor" 
without  suflfering  in  the  esteem  of  his  fellows.  "He  was  regarded 
as  embodied  intellect,  with  no  animalism  to  make  him  combative." 
The  last  words  may  be  misleading.  He  was  physically  a  huge 
bulk  of  a  man,  not  particularly  refined.  He  was  a  hammer,  not  a 
rapier. 

It  may,  perhaps,  precisely  illustrate  Davis'  thought  to  quote  the 
declaration  of  repudiation  from  Governor  McNutt's  last  message, 
as  follows :  "I  have  deemed  it  my  duty  to  advise  the  bond-holders 
that  this  State  never  will  pay  the  $5,000,000  in  State  bonds  deliv- 
ered to  the  Mississippi  Union  bank,  or  any  part  of  the  interest 
due  or  to  become  due  thereon.  An  appeal  has  been  made  to  the 
sovereign  people  of  the  State,  on  this  question ;  and  their  verdict, 
from  which  no  appeal  can  be  taken,  has  triumphantly  sustained 
the  principles  for  which  I  have  long  contended.  No  power  can 
compel  them  to  pay  a  demand  which  they  know  to  be  unjust. 
This  result  has  gloriously  sustained  the  sacred  truth,  that  the 
toiling  millions  never  should  be  burthened  with  taxes  to  support 
the  idle  few.  Our  constituents  have  wisely  resolved  that  the 
highest  obligations  of  honor,  faith  and  justice,  demand  of  us  a 
strict  adherence  to  the  constitution  and  that  the  laws  of  the  land 
cannot  be  set  at  defiance.  Whenever  a  different  principle  shall 
prevail,  and  the  doctrine  be  firmly  established,  that  any  agent  or 
corporation  can,  in  violation  of  law,  burthen  unborn  generations 
with  onerous  debts — freedom  will  no  longer  exist,  and  oiir  star 
will  be  blotted  forever  from  the  constellation  of  republican  States." 
He  advised  a  thorough  investigation.  "The  facts  .  .  .  will 
prove  that  Mississippi  stands  fully  justified  in  the  stand  she  has 
taken,  and  that  her  faith,  justice,  honor,  dignity  and  glory  remain 
untarnished." 

To  these  words  the  governor  immediately  added  that  $5,000,000 
more  of  the  same  kind  of  bonds,  executed  by  him  in  the  fall  of 
1839  and  delivered  to  the  bank  to  sell,  had  not  been  disposed  of, 
"fortunately."  These  also,  if  they  had  been  sold,  he  would  have 
repudiated  with  the  same  amazing  self-righteousness,  entirely 
oblivious  of  the  fact  that  when  he  signed  the  bonds  he  abnegated 


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MISSISSIPPI  195 

all  his  "principles"  and  made  himself  a  partner  in  guilt  with  the 
New  York  and  Amsterdam  bond  "sharks/*  He  and  the  legisla- 
ture manufactured  the  goods,  the  bankers  and  sharks  sold  them^ 
and  the  victims  among  the  common  people  bought  them.  His 
act  of  repudiation  protected  the  bankers  and  sharks,  ruined  thou- 
sands who  were  innocent  of  anything  but  speculation,  and  im- 
paired the  credit  of  the  State  for  many  years. 

Yet,  despite  his  faults,  it  must  be  remembered  that  McNutt  was 
the  great  enemy  of  the  "grafters"  of  his  day  in  Mississippi. 
Furthermore,  perhaps  an  obituary  notice  of  1848  did  not  err  in 
saying  that  in  later  life  the  errors  of  his  early  manhood  were 
cast  off,  and  no  man  in  the  State  was  more  respected  and  beloved. 

McNutt's  Administration.  Alexander  G.  McNutt  was  inaugu- 
rated January  8,  1838.  He  was  elected  as  an  opponent  of  the  dan- 
gerous privileges  of  the  banks.  As  president  of  the  senate  in  1837 
he  had  signed  the  bill  creating  the  Union  bank,  with  a  capital  of 
$15,500,000  in  mortgages  on  land,  buildings  and  slaves,  and  now 
as  governor  in  February,  1838,  he  signed  the  bill  on  its  second 
passage,  and  a  supplementary  bill,  by  which  the  State  subscribed 
for  500,000  shares  in  the  bank,  to  be  paid  for  out  of  the  profits  to 
accrue  to  the  State  under  the  original  bill.  This  bill  made  the 
State  a  partner  in  the  scheme,  as  well  as  surety.  "Union  banks," 
which  had  the  peculiarity  of  slave  as  well  as  land  security,  were 
also  established  in  other  States,  but  the  Mississippi  venture  was 
the  most  ambitious  and  notorious  one  of  all.  The  bill,  as  it  passed 
two  sessions  of  the  legislature,  provided  for  raising  the  money  by 
selling  bonds,  and  the  faith  of  the  State  was  pledged  for  their  pay- 
ment, principal  and  interest.  The  bill  was  passed  twice,  as  re- 
quired by  the  constitution  to  be  done,  in  any  case  where  the  faith 
of  the  State  was  to  be  pledged  for  such  purposes. 

In  his  message  of  January,  1839,  the  governor  said  the  season 
had  been  bad  for  cotton,  but  "We  have  been  blessed  by  the  giver 
of  all  good  with  an  abundant  harvest  of  grain  and  the  enjoyment 
of  better  health  than  usual.  Penury  is  unknown  in  the  land — the 
elements  of  our  wealth  remain — unwise  legislation  has  brought 
upon  us  a  great  calamity.  For  about  two  years  the  planter  and 
merchant  have  alike  suffered.  Every  indication  warrants  us  in 
expecting  better  times — confidence  is  nearly  restored.  Most  of 
our  banks  have  resumed  specie  payments,  and  the  residue  will  be 
compelled  to  follow  their  example  or  close  their  business.  The 
price  of  cotton  has  advanced  fully  fifty  per  cent,  and  the  crop  of 
last  year  will,  no  doubt,  sell  for  as  much  as  that  of  1837.  A  sound 
currency  will  greatly  diminish  the  cost  of  its  production.  .  .  . 
Our  amended  constitution  has  been  in  operation  about  six  years. 
More  liberal  in  its  provisions  than  those  of  our  sister  states,  it 
leaves  to  the  people  the  periodical  election  of  all  their  officers, 
and  has  realized  the  expectations  of  its  framers.  .  .  .  No  code 
of  laws  has  yet  been  enacted  to  carry  out  its  provisions  and  many 
of  its  injunctions  have  been  disregarded." 

Property  qualifications  for  suffrage  and  office  having  been  re- 


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196  MISSISSIPPI 

pudiated,  common  schools  were  necessary,  and  the  resources  of 
the  State  were  ample  to  maintain  them.  The  seminary  fund 
amounted  to  $314,000,  exclusive  of  interest  and  a  half  section  of 
land.  This  arose  from  the  donation  of  36  sections.  The  money 
was  at  loan  and  generally  well  secured,  but  many  of  the  notes 
were  long  under  protest. 

Of  the  late  auditor,  John  H,  Mallory,  the  governor  said,  "It 
appears  that  he  is  a  defaulter  to  the  amount  of  $54,079,  nearly  all 
on  account  of  town  lots  and  the  Three  per  cent,  seminary  and 
sinking  funds.  .  .  .  Great  looseness  appears  to  have  prevailed 
in  both  the  auditor's  and  treasurer's  office  during  the  years  1836 
and  1837." 

The  treasurer,  James  Phillips,  had  been  authorized  to  receive 
the  distribution  of  surplus  from  the  United  States  treasury.  "No 
authority  was  given  him  to  receive  of  the  government  of  the 
United  States  anything  but  gold  and  silver,  or  the  notes  of  specie 
paying  banks,  yet,  in  defiance  of  law,  he  received  payment  of  the 
treasury  drafts  in  such  depreciated  paper  as  the  Agricultural  bank 
chose  to  give  him.  .  .  .  About  $200,000  of  this  was  deposited 
in  the  Planters'  bank  at  Jackson,  and  that  branch  has,  ever  since 
the  suspension,  refused  to  pay  out  anything  to  the  public  cred- 
itors except  Brandon  money."  "It  is  deserving  of  your  serious 
consideration  whether  the  embezzlement  of  the  public  money 
should  not  be  made  felony,  and  punishable  by  imprisonment  in  the 
State  prison." 

J.  A.  VanHoesen  was  appointed  in  September,  1838,  to  suc- 
ceed Phillips,  deceased,  as  treasurer.  Twenty  thousand  dollars 
was  held  out  by  the  representatives  of  Phillips  for  some  time,  and 
then  paid  in  uncurrent  money,  and  VanHoesen  reported  that  he 
could  not  ascertain  the  true  situation  of  the  late  treasurer's  books. 
The  secretary  of  state,  1838-39,  was  David  Dickson ;  auditor,  A.  B. 
Saunders,  1837-42.  T.  F.  Collins  was  attorney-general,  1837-41. 
Gen.  Silas  Brown,  who  went  into  office  as  treasurer  in  January, 
1839,  died  in  June. 

The  treasury  receipts  of  1838  were  $196,920;  expenditures, 
$350,644.  The  treasurer's  report  showed  $140,000  in  the  treasury, 
but  the  receipts  of  the  treasury  at  this  time  were  nearly  all  in 
bank  notes  that  no  one  else  would  take,  the  legislature  having 
made  them  all  equally  good  in  payment  of  taxes. 

In  his  statement  of  the  public  debt  Governor  McNutt  included 
$382,335,  deposited  by  the  general  government  and  liable  at  any 
time  to  be  withdrawn ;  also  $2,000,000  in  bonds  sold  to  take  stock 
to  that  amount  in  the  Planters'  bank,  and  $5,000,000  sold  to  take 
stock  to  that  amount  in  the  Mississippi  Union  bank,  "amounting 
in  all  to  the  sum  of  $7,382,335,  and  the  annual  interest  on. that 
sum,  most  of  it  payable  in  Europe,  amounts  to  the  sum  of  $370,- 
000.  To  preserve  the  honor  of  the  State  unsullied,  and  her  credit 
unimpaired,  it  is  of  the  last  importance  that  the  interest  should 
be  punctually  paid,  at  the  places  designated,  and  ample  funds  pro- 
vided  for   the   redemption   of   the   principal — it   is   usually   much 


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MISSISSIPPI  197 

easier  to  borrow  and  spend  money  than  to  provide  for  the  mean's 
of  payment." 

In  face  of  all  warnings  the  legislature  passed  a  bill  for  still 
greater  privileges  to  the  Union  bank,  extending  the  pledge  to 
$15,000,000,  and  permitting  post  notes  at  will.  Gov.  McNutt 
vetoed  it,  saying  that  if  he  approved  he  would  feel  "guilty  of 
signing  the  death  warrant  of  the  credit  of  the  state,  and  of  the 
Mississippi  Union  bank."  The  bill  failed  to  command  quite  two- 
thirds  of  the  senate  and  so  it  was  killed  by  the  veto. 

Adam  L.  Bingaman,  president  of  the  senate,  upon  adjournment, 
in  his  farewell  address,  said  party  spirit  had  steps  of  descent  from 
principles  to  measures  and  thence  to  blind  devotion  to  men.  But 
there  was  a  still  lower  deep,  "when  principles,  measures  and  men 
are  all  sacrified  to  mammon ;  and  lucre  and  corruption  become  the 
adamantine  chains  which  connect  together  in  indissoluble  bonds 
the  degraded  victims  of  party  spirit."  Such  had  been  the  history 
of  all  republics,  "May  the  God  of  nations  procrastinate,  if  he  will 
not  avert,  the  fatal  day  when  it  shall  become  the  history  of  our 
own." 

The  political  campaign  of  1839  was  a  memorable  one.  S.  S. 
Prentiss  canvassed  the  State  as  the  Whig  candidate  for  United 
States  senator,  to  succeed  Robert  J.  Walker. 

The  Whig,  (Henry  Clay)  ticket,  was  A.  L.  Bingaman  and  Reu- 
ben Davis  for  congress,  Edward  Turner  for  governor,  Dudley  S. 
Jennings  for  secretary  of  state,  Gideon  Fitz,  for  treasurer,  and 
John  Cruso  for  Auditor. 

The  Democratic  (VanBuren)  ticket,  was  elected:  Albert  G. 
Brown  and  Jacob  Thompson  for  congress ;  A.  G.  McNutt  for  gov^ 
emor,  Thomas  B.  Woodward,  secretary  of  state;  Thomas  Craig, 
treasurer;  A.  B.  Saunders,  auditor. 

Joseph  G.  Williams  succeeded  Craig  in  the  office  of  treasurer, 
and  it  was  said  at  his  death  at  Jackson,  February  25,  1841,  that 
he  was  the  fourth  treasurer  to  die  in  two  years.  Joshua  S.  Curtis 
held  this  office  during  the  remainder  of  McNutt's  administration. 

The  vote  for  governor  was  McNutt,  18,900 ;  Turner,  15,886.  The 
legislature  was  overwhelmingly  Democratic,  assuring  the  defeat 
of  Prentiss. 

Gov.  McNutt  welcomed  the  legislature  of  1840  in  January  as 
fresh  from  the  people.  "We  all  come  here  pledged  to  aid  in  re- 
forming abuses  which  can  be  tolerated  no  longer."  The  senate 
on  the  44th  ballot  elected  George  B.  Augustus  president,  and 
Jesse  Speight  was  chosen  speaker  of  the  house. 

The  governor  construed  the  election  of  1839  as  a  condemnation 
of  the  post  note  policy  of  the  banks,  against  which  he  directed 
most  of  his  sturdy  phillipics.  He  advised  repeal  of  the  bank  char- 
ters. "Our  annual  export  of  fifteen  millions  of  dollars  will  com- 
mand a  sound  currency.  Money  will  then  become  a  standard  of 
value,  and  not  used  as  an  article  of  traffic.  The  expense  of  pro- 
ducing cotton  will  be  reduced  at  least  fifty  per  cent.  ...  A 
sound   currency   will   soon    restore    the   character   of   the   State. 


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198  MISSISSIPPI 

Those  who  produce  nothing,  who  have  long  lived  on  the  labor  of 
others,  will  suffer.  The  honest  planter,  the  enterprising  merdiant 
and  the  laborious  mechanic  will  be  benefited." 

The  revenue  of  the  State  in  1839  had  been  $287,000,  and  war- 
rants had  been  issued  for  $366,000. 

There  was  "a  long  list  of  defaulters"  among  the  tax  collectors 
of  the  State.    The  amount  in  default  was  at  least  $100,000. 

On  this  subject  the  governor  said  in  1842:  "The  existing  sys- 
tem relative  to  the  collection  of  money  due  by  defaulters  is 
radically  defective.  Experience  has  demonstrated  that  but  little 
is  paid  into  the  State  treasury  on  such  claims.  Cases  .  .  .  are 
permitted  to  slumber  on  the  docket,  until  the  parties  to  the  bond 
become  insolvent.  Many  thousand  dollars  are  annually  lost  to  the 
State  by  delays  and  failures  in  the  prosecution  of  suits  against 
defaulters." 

As  for  the  system  of  taxation,  many  of  the  banks  were  evading 
it.  "The  dishonest  usurer  and  the  fraudulent  banker  are  at  pres- 
ent exonerated  and  taxes  alone  collected  from  the  honest  laborer. 
.  .  .  Not  one-third  of  the  landed  estate  of  the  country,  subject 
to  taxation,  is  ever  assessed."  The  banks  to  which  indulgence  had 
been  given  by  the  State  had  all  failed  to  comply  with  the  condi- 
tions. The  whole  amount  was  probably  a  dead  loss.  Gen.  Silas 
Brown,  when  treasurer,  in  the  absence  of  the  governor,  allowed 
the  Planters*  bank  to  pay  its  entire  indebtedness  in  Brandon 
money.  The  literary  fund  was  all  invested  in  the  Planters'  bank, 
the  stock  of  which  was  below  par.  Of  the  banks'  refusal  to  permit 
inspection  by  State  commissioners,  the  governor  said:  "The 
grounds  of  the  various  refusals  show  an  utter  disregard  of  the 
laws  of  the  land  and  a  thorough  contempt  of  legislative  control." 

Of  this  period  Reuben  Davis  wrote:  "We  had  no  currency. 
The  United  States  bank  had  gone  down  before  the  onslaught  of 
the  indomitable  General  Jackson.  All  the  state  banks  were  buried 
in  its  ruins.  Commerce  was  suspended.  Insolvency  was  the  rule, 
and  judgments  accumulated  against  nearly  all  citizens.  Such  a 
time  of  rage  and  excitement  is  rarely  seen  during  a  period  of  peace. 
By  means  of  executions,  sheriffs  were  seizing  real  and  personal 
estate  all  over  the  country,  and  advertising  for  immediate  sale. 
On  the  days  appointed  for  such  sales,  the  people  assembled  in 
angry  mobs,  and  the  feeling  was  evidently  so  desperate  that  sher- 
iffs were  compelled  to  postpone  proceedings.  They  dared  not 
invoke  the  full  fury  of  a  storm  that,  once  let  loose,  would  spend 
itself  in  irresistible  destruction." 

The  State  was  in  the  grip  of  the  rag-money  bank  combination, 
which  apparently  defied  all  effort  at  regulation.  By  maintaining 
the  system  the  eminent  citizens  engaged  in  banking  were  able  to 
make  profits  of  about  50%  annually  out  of  the  unfortunate  public. 
The  revolt  of  the  debtors  against  the  grip  of  the  capitalists  upon 
the  legislature  and  courts  practically  paralyzed  the  administration 
of  justice.  In  some  cases,  when  courts  were  to  be  held,  the  sher- 
iff and  coroner  of  the  county  would  resign  to  prevent  the  formal 


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MISSISSIPPI  199 

opening  of  the  session  and  the  entry  of  judgments.  This  was  the 
day  when  it  was  said  that  a  common  return  by  sheriflfs  upon  writs 
for  collection,  was  "G.  T.  T." — Gone  to  Texas.  Against  this  con- 
dition of  things — against  the  almost  incredible  insolence  and 
audacious  crime  of  the  banking  system,  which  had  at  beck  and 
call  the  eloquence  and  wit  of  Prentiss  and  Foote  and  other  great- 
lawyers  and  orators,  McNutt  pounded  away,  blindly  and  fero- 
ciously no  doubt,  but  with  a  tremendous  earnestness  that  com- 
mands respect.  He  was  accused  of  misdemeanor  and  crime, 
ridiculed,  insulted  and  jeered  at.  He  endured  it  all,  calmly  refus- 
ing to  permit  an  appeal  to  the  field  of  honor,  which  might  give  his 
antagonists  an  opportunity  to  put  him  out  of  the  way,  and  thus 
gain  a  triumph  over  his  cause. 

He  had  the  advantage  of  wealth  and  a  happy  temperament  so- 
cially, and  his  political  enemies  were  compelled  to  yield  to  his 
generous  hospitality. 

After  the  adjournment  of  the  legislature,  which  adopted  laws 
embodying  his  views  regarding  the  banks,  the  governor  issued 
his  famous  proclamation  announcing  that  the  State  would  not 
pay  the  Union  bank  bonds.  A  public  meeting  at  Natchez,  presided 
over  by  Col.  Bingaman  and  addressed  by  S.  §.  Prentiss,  denounced 
the  proclamation  as  a  wanton  assault  upon  the  credit  of  the  State. 
The  year  1840  was  also  memorable  for  the  Harrison  campaign 
(q.  v.),  the  tornado  at  Natchez,  and  the  iast  visit  of  Andrew  Jack- 
son. 

In  the  years  1839  and  1840  the  ordinary  expenses  of  the  State 
government  exceeded  the  receipts  into  the  treasury  by  the  sum 
of  $54,742,  and  the  treasurer  was  unable  to  pay  warrants  of  the 
auditor  to  the  amount  of  $393,500. 

The  treasurer's  statement  was  $161,000  receipts,  including 
$63,000  in  Mississippi  railroad  notes  that  could  not  be  paid  out, 
and  the  auditor's  report  showed  warrants  issued  in  the  same  time 
for  $491,632,  of  which  $93,000  was  for  public  buildings  and  $183,000 
to  pay  loans  from  banks. 

The  treasury  contained  over  $300,000  of  various  sorts  of  bank 
paper  that  was  probably  worthless.  State  officials  received  their 
pay  in  warrants,  worth  about  35  cents  on  the  dollar.  There  was  a 
default  of  $55,000  by  the  tax  collectors. 

Yet  in  January,  1841,  Gov.  McNutt  said:  "We  produce  annu- 
ally cotton  equal  in  value  to  one-third  of  the  whole  crop  of  the 
Union;  and  it  yields  an  amount  equal  to  one-seventh  of  all  the 
exports  of  the  United  States,  of  domestic  growth.  The  immense 
increase  in  the  growth  of  corn,  oats,  wheat  and  rye,  and  the  large 
amount  of  horses,  cattle  and  swine  raised  by  our  planters,  have 
made  us  independent  of  other  States  for  the  necessaries  of  life." 

Next  came  repudiation,  with  the  governor  as  the  foremost 
champion.  In  his  message  of  January,  1841,  he  said  the  State  was 
already  in  debt  $400,000  on  auditor's  warrants,  and  to  meet  the 
bank  bonds  and  interest  would  require  another  million  to  be  raised 
by  taxation  immediately.     "Such  an  enormous  tax  can  n^ver  be 


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200  MISSISSIPPI 

collected  from  the  hard*  earnings  of  the  people  of  this  State.  They 
will  not  elect  representatives  who  will  impose  it,  or  tax  gatherers 
who  will  collect  it." 

Various  legal  arguments  were  made  in  support  of  repudiation, 
and  popular  pleas  intended  to  justify  the  act.  One  was  that  the 
real  seal  of  the  State  was  not  affixed  to  the  Union  bank  bonds, 
which  was  specially  made  for  the  occasion.  But  the  repudiation, 
once  begun,  extended  to  the  Planters'  bank  bonds,  against  which 
there  was  no  genuine  objection.  The  fact  was,  the  people  had 
been  victimized  by  their  statesmen  and  financiers;  the  bonds  had 
been  sold  to  speculators  who,  if  not  exactly  receivers  of  stolen 
goods,  were  expectant  beneficiaries  of  an  abuse  of  public  trust, 
and,  under  the  circumstances,  the  people  of  Mississippi,  after 
yielding  up  enormous  profits  to  the  combination  for  a  term  of 
years,  decided  they  could  not  afford  to  be  bled  any  longer.  There 
can  be  no  manner  of  doubt  that  some  sort  of  settlement  would 
have  been  infinitely  better  than  the  course  pursued.  But  so  it  was 
done — the  pledge  of  the  State  was  totally  repudiated. 

To  carry  out  his  part  of  the  work  Gov.  McNutt  passed  upon  the 
constitutionality  of  laws.  The  constitution  of  1832  authorized  the 
legislature  to  regulate  the  manner  in  which  suits  might  be  brought 
against  the  State,  and  the  legislature  of  1838  passed  an  act  au- 
thorizing suits  on  claims  in  the  superior  court  of  chancery.  Sev- 
eral suits  for  large  amounts  were  pending  in  that  court  in  1841 
and  there  was  a  probability  of  suits  on  the  bonds  of  the  Planters 
and  Union  banks.  The  governor  gave  notice  that  the  act,  in  re- 
quiring him  to  issue  warrants  on  the  treasury  to  pay  judgments, 
was  unconstitutional,  because  it  was  provided  that  no  money 
should  be  paid  from  the  treasury  except  by  appropriation  by  the 
legislature.     (Message  of  1842.) 

The  State  campaign  of  1841  was  upon  the  question  of  honoring 
the  faith  pledge  of  the  bbnds.  The  Whigs  proposed  to  do  so,  and 
nominated  Judge  David  O.  Shattuck  for  governor.  The  Demo- 
crats nominated  Hanson  Alsbury  and,  upon  his  removal  from  the 
State,  Tilghman  M.  Tucker.  The  vote  was  Tucker,  19,059 ;  Shat- 
tuck, 16,773. 

In  his  last  message,  January,  1842,  Gov.  McNutt  made  a  state- 
ment of  the  condition  of  the  State  government.  The  legislature 
had  been  meeting  twice  as  often  as  the  constitution  provided,  and 
"the  expenses  attendant  thereon  had  impoverished  the  State  treas- 
ury." The  published  acts  of  1841  contained  contradictory  laws, 
which  had  created  gjeat  confusion.  The  State  officers,  auditor, 
treasurer  and  secretary  of  state,  were  in  the  habit  of  absenting 
themselves  from  the  capital  for  long  periods,  leaving  their  busi- 
ness in  the  hands  of  irresponsible  clerks.  "Under  such  circum- 
stances the  public  business  is  often  neglected,  and  the  funds  of  the 
State  endangered."  Auditor  Mallory  was  indebted  to  the  State 
in  the  sum  of  $54,000.  "Suit  has  been  pending  on  his  bond  for 
near  three  years.  Assistant  counsel  have  been  employed  by  the 
State,  but  no  judgment  has  been  recovered.    In  the  meantime  his 


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MISSISSIPPI  201 

sureties  have  become  insolvent,  and  the  whole  debt  may  be  con- 
sidered lost/'  The  State  laws  were  such  that  "the  public  offices 
may  be  closed,  the  funds  wasted  and  embezzled,  and  no  power  can 
remove  the  culprit  until  regularly  impeached." 

For  nearly  two  years  the  treasurer  had  been  unable  to  cash  the 
warrants  of  the  auditor,  and  to  that  extent  he  had  ceased  to  be  a 
check  upon  the  auditor.     "Many  thousand  dollars  are  annually  ^ 
lost  to  the  State  by  delays  and  failures  in  the  prosecution  of  suits 
against  defaulters"  among  the  tax  collectors. 

"This  State,  by  its  connection  with  banks,  has  lost  the  follow- 
ing sums,  towit :  In  notes  of  the  Brandon  and  Grenada-  banks, 
$238,102;  Natchez  Railroad  company,  $63,030;  Mississippi  Union 
bank,  $1,832;  Hernando  Railroad  company,  $20;  Corporation  of 
the  City  of  Jackson,  $3;  total,  $302,988.  The  taxpayers  paid  said 
sums  in  funds  nearly  equivalent  to  specie.  The  losses  sustained 
by  the  State  in  the  reception  of  bank  paper  admonish  the  legisla- 
ture of  the  danger  of  taking  it  in  payment  of  the  public  dues.  The 
banks  of  this  State  have  sunk  about  twenty  millions  of  dollars  in 
relieving  the  financiers — they  will  receive  their  last  relief  in  the 
Bankrupt  act." 

The  great  record  of  McNutt's  administration  was  the  creation 
of  the  Union  bank  and  a  debt  of  $5,000,000  and  the  repudiation 
thereof,  all  within  four  years.  Besides  this  the  governor  and  legis- 
lature absolutely  threw  away  the  stock  in  the  Planters'  bank, 
which  had  previously  yielded  an  annual  dividend  of  $200,000,  and 
destroyed  the  sinking  fund.  On  the  first  day  of  January,  1838, 
there  was  in  the  treasury  the  sum  of  $279,613  in  cash.  Four  years 
later  there  was  34  cents  in  specie,  a  lot  of  worthless  bank  notes, 
and  claims  of  $8,000,000  debt  pressing  for  adjustment.  "This 
presents  a  scene  of  reckless  extravagance  and  prodigality  un- 
equalled in  the  administration  of  any  free  government  which  has 
ever  existed."     (Message  of  Governor  Tilghman,  1843.) 

McRae,  a  postoffice  of  Wayne  county,  named  for  one  of  the 
pioneer  families  of  the  county. 

McRae,  John  J.,  was  a  son  of  John  McRae,  who  was  a  merchant 
at  Sneedsboro,  N.  C,  until  his  removal  to  Winchester,  Wayne 
county,  in  1817.  There  John  McRae  was  prominent  as  a  cotton 
buyer,  and  was  the  first  to  send  barges  down  the  Pascagoula  river, 
loaded  with  cotton  for  shipment  to  New  Orleans.  He  finally  estab- 
lished a  station  and  agency  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  whither  he 
removed  for  his  health  in  1826.  John  J.  McRae  was  bom  in  North 
Carolina,  January  10,  1815,  and  was  educated  at  the  Frederick 
school  at  Pascagoula,  and  at  Miami  university,  near  Cincinnati, 
Ohio,  where  he  was  graduated  before  he  was  19.  He  read  law 
with  Judge  Pray,  at  Pearlington,  and  while  there  became  engaged 
to  a  widow,  Mrs.  McGuire,  to  whom  he  was  married  in  1835.  He 
was  occupied  for  some  time,  with  a  brother  of  President  Tyler,  in 
the  removal  of  Indians  to  the  west,  and  was  very  active  in  making 
the  campaigrn  to  secure  popular  support  alongr  the  line  of  the  pro- 
posed Mobile  &  Ohio  railroad.    In  early  manhood  he  founded  the 


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202  MISSISSIPPI 

newspaper,  Eastern  Clarion,  at  Paulding.  He  was  the  representa- 
tive of  Qarke  county  in  the  legislature  in  1848  and  1850,  and  in 
that  time  of  exciting  political  combat  was  one  of  the  popular  ora- 
tors of  the  State  Rights  party,  led  by  Quitman  and  Davis.  He 
was  "a  bright  speaker,  gay,  humorous  and  fascinating."  He  was 
speaker  of  the  house  in  1850,  and  in  the  fall  of  1851,  after  Senator 
Davis  had  resigned  to  become  a  candidate  for  governor,  McRae 
was  appointed  by  the  acting  governor,  Whitfield,  to  fill  the  vacancy 
until  the  legislature  could  elect.  He  took  his  seat  at  the  opening 
of  congfress  in  December,  and  served  until  March  17,  following. 
The  elections  went  against  his  party,  and  though  he  received  his 
party  vote  in  the  legislature,  Stephen  Adams  was  elected.  McRae 
was  governor,  1854-58.  In  1858,  upon  the  death  of  Gen.  Quitman, 
McRae  was  elected  to  succeed  him  as  representative  in  congress, 
and  was  reelected  to  the  next  cong^ress,  serving  until  he  retired 
January  12,  1861,  upon  the  secession  of  the  State.  He  was  an  ar- 
dent supporter  of  secession,  and  a  representative  of  Mississippi 
in  the  First  congress  of  the  Confederate  States.  After  the  fall 
of  the  Confederacy,  suffering  under  this  calamity,  financial  losses 
and  the  death  of  his  wife  and  mother,  his  health  failed  rapidly. 
His  gfreat  desire  was  to  meet  once  more  his  brother  Colin,  who 
had  been  in  Europe  several  years  as  financial  agent  for  the  Con- 
federacy, and  was  then  at  Belize,  in  British  Honduras.  He  sailed 
thither  from  New  Orleans  in  May,  1868,  and  after  a  rough  voyage 
was  so  prostrated  that  he  was  barely  able  to  recogfnize  his  brother. 
He  died  there  May  31,  1868,  and  his  brother  was  buried  there  be- 
side him  in  1876.    (Publ.  Miss.  Hist.  Soc,  VI,  270.) 

McRae  Administration.  In  his  inaugural  address,  January  10, 
1854,  Gov.  McRae  took  occasion  to  speak  of  that  "glory  and  beauty 
of  our  institutions,  that  changes  of  our  rulers  take  place  as  quietly 
as  the  changes  of  the  seasons.  .  .  .  The  executive  head  of 
the  State  is  changed  today,  and  the  masses  of  the  people  are 
scarcely  aware  of  the  transition."  This  sentiment  was  in  marked 
contrast  to  the  acute  personalities  of  the  farewell  address  of  Gov- 
ernor Foote's  administration  (q.  v.).  Gov.  McRae  based  his  elec- 
tion upon  popular  belief  in  certain  general  principles.  "First  in 
importance  of  these  is  the  nationality  of  the  great  doctrine  of 
State  Rights,  based  upon  the  individuality  and  sovereignty  of  the 
several  States,  as  co-equals  in  the  Confederacy.  Upon  this  depends 
the  perpetuity  and  safety  of  the  Union.  .  .  .  Co-equal  rights  in 
the  Union,  and  the  right  of  the  States  severally  to  judge  for  them- 
selves of  infractions  of  the  Constitution,  as  well  as  of  the  mode 
and  measure  of  redress,  is  the  great  distinguishing  feature  of  our 
republican  form  of  government."  To  this  the  governor  added: 
"To  nationalize  this  great  principle  is  the  work  of  patriotism;  to 
sectionalize  it  is  to  destroy  the  best  hopes  of  the  Republic." 

In  his  plea  for  education  the  governor  said :  "There  are  but  two 
great  ideas  worthy  of  life — God  and  liberty.  They  embrace  all 
of  value  here;  all  that  is  important  hereafter.  But  to  appreciate 
these,  man  must  be  intelligent;  to  be  intelligent  he  must  be  edu- 


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MISSISSIPPI  203 

cated;  to  be  educated,  the  means  must  be  provided,  and  this  is 
the  duty  of  the  State." 

His  administration  was  confronted  by  financial  embarrassment. 
The  new  State  treasurer,  Shields  L.  Hussey,  reported  that  when 
he  took  office  in  the  preceding  December,  there  was  very  little 
money  in  the  treasury  except  what  was  due  to  the  Trust  funds, 
and  he  had  been  able  to  cash  but  few  of  the  auditor's  warrants 
since.  He  suggested  that  he  be  permitted  to  draw  on  these  funds 
to  meet  the  ordinary  expenses.  The  secretary  of  state,  elected  in 
1853,  was  William  H.  Muse;  the  auditor,  Madison  McAfee.  Col. 
David  C.  Glenn  was  elected  attorney-general  to  succeed  John  D. 
Freeman,  who  had  served  since  1841.  Muse  died  January  9,  1855, 
and  A.  B.  Dilworth  was  appointed  to  the  vacancy. 

To  the  legislature  of  1854  was  presented  a  petition  of  ladies, 
married  and  unmarried,  for  some  action  regarding  "the  alarming 
evils  of  intemperance,  prevalent  to  so  fearful  an  extent,  not  only 
in  the  city  of  Jackson,  but. also  throughout  the  State  of  Missis- 
sippi." The  legislature  responded  to  this  and  other  petitions  with 
an  act  regulating  license  and  submitting  the  question  of  license  to 
the  sentiment  of  the  majority  of  the  community  in  which  it  was 
asked  to  be  granted. 

The  legislature  refused  to  make  a  legislative  apportionment, 
against  which  21  members  of  the  house  filed  a  solemn  protest. 
A  smaller  number  protested  against  the  giving  of  a  cash  bonus 
to  the  proposed  New  Orleans,  Jackson  &  Great  Northern  railroad. 
In  1854  the  State  had  as  railroad  outlets  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  road, 
in  operation  from  Lauderdale  Springs  to  Mobile,  and  the  Mem- 
phis &  Charleston  road  through  Corinth.  The  New  Orleans  road 
had  been  laid  to  the  State  line. 

The  Deaf  and  Dumb  institute  was  opened  in  August,  1854, 
through  the  purchase  of  the  Cleaver  Female  institute  grounds  and 
buildings  with  funds  from  the  sales  of  public  lands  placed  to  the 
credit  of  the  State  by  act  of  congress,  1841. 

Gov.  McRae  was  renominated  by  his  party  in  the  spring  of  1855. 
There  was  no  Whig  nomination  against  him.  The  "Know  Noth- 
ing^' or  American  party  (q.  v.)  was  at  the  climax  of  its  sudden 
and  brief  career.  It  promised  to  be  a  national  party,  and  there 
was  need  of  one.  It  spread  with  wonderful  rapidity  North  and 
South.  It  was  the  issue  in  18&5,  and  the  candidate  of  the  new 
•  movement,  selected,  it  was  said,  at  a  secret  meeting  at  New  Or- 
leans, was  Charles  D.  Fontaine,  of  Pontotoc,  a  lawyer  of  high 
standing.  The  nomination  was  admitted  by  all  to  be  a  strong 
one.  Lock  E.  Houston  was  one  of  its  candidates  for  Congress.  In 
some  counties  the  movement  was  so  strong  that  Democratic  nom- 
inations went  beggfing.  The  Whigs  went  into  the  movement  al- 
most unanimously.  That  old  party  had  practically  ceased  to  be, 
with  the  defeat  of  Scott. 

But  McRae  was  reelected  by  about  the  same  vote  as  before — 
32,666  to  27,579.    After  this  the  Democratic  party  rapidly  became 


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204  MISSISSIPPI 

the  Southern  party,  in  the  South.  Events  began  to  combine  rap- 
idly toward  a  climax  of  sectional  strife. 

At  the  general  election  in  1855  two  amendments  to  the  consti- 
tution were  adopted,  numbers  Four  and  Five.  The  first  extended 
the  terms  of  all  public  officers  which  would  expire  at  the  general 
elections  in  1857,  or  any  subsequent  year,  to  the  first  Monday  of 
January  following,  and  provided  that  the  terms  of  officers  elected 
in  1857  should  begin  in  January,  1858.  The  Fifth  amendment 
changed  the  general  elections  to  the  first  Monday  of  October,  and 
restricted  them  to  one  day;  the  elections  of  congressmen,  state 
officers  and  legislators  to  be  biennial  beginning  in  1857;  the  legis- 
lature to  meet  on  the  first  Monday  of  November  in  1857,  and 
thereafter  biennially;  the  governor's  term  to  begin  on  the  third 
Monday  of  November,  and  the  terms  of  other  officers  on  the  first 
Monday  of  January;  the  elections  of  county,  district  and  judicial 
officers  to  be  held  biennially,  beginning  in  October,  1858.  These 
were  inserted  in  the  constitution  by  act  approved  February  6, 
1856. 

Within  a  few  months  the  talk  of  secession  was  revived  in  con- 
gress, during  the  g^eat  struggle  for  the  election  of  a  speaker,  in 
which  there  was  a  Southern  Know  Nothing  candidate  as  well  as  a 
Democrat  candidate.  Then  there  was  heard  the  voice  of  the  Free 
Soil  party,  taking  the  old  name  of  Jeflferson's  party,  "Republican/' 
and  declaring  that  it  would  soon  have  a  majority  in  congress  and 
wotTld  utterly  deny  the  theory  of  secession  and  by  force  prevent 
any  attempt  at  secession.  To  which  a  Virginian  made  answer 
that  whenever  the  Republicans  elected  a  president,  the  South 
would  secede. 

Governor  McRae  submitted  to  the  legislature  in  January,  1856, 
the  resolutions  of  the  legislature  of  Maine,  demanding  the  aboli- 
tion of  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  the  repeal  of  the  Fugi- 
tive slave  law,  the  prohibition  forever  of  slavery  in  the  Territories 
of  the  United  States,  and  the  admission  of  no  new  States  in  which 
slave  labor  was  permitted.  Against  this  he  set  the  resolutions  of 
the  Mississippi  convention  of  1851  (q.  v.),  which  he  and  his  party 
had  at  the  time  opposed,  seeking  not  disunion,  he  said,  but  a  per- 
manent settlement  of  all  questions.  He  recommended  the  legis- 
lature to  reaffirm  these  resolutions,  calmly  and  firmly,  "and  our 
determination  to  maintain  them  at  all  hazards." 

The  legislature  of  1856  gave  much  of  its  time  to  considering  and 
adopting  the  code  prepared  by  Sharkey,  Ellett  and  Harris,  and 
being  unable  to  finish  that  work,  completed  it  at  a  special  session 
begun  in  December,  1856. 

Governor  McRae's  message  in  1856  was  notable  as  the  first  one 
for  several  administrations,  devoted  mainly  to  a  discussion  of 
State  aflfairs.  It  set  the  pattern  for  executive  messages  which, 
with  some  amplification,  has  ever  since  prevailed.  He  said  that 
with  the  exception  of  the  pestilence  which,  within  a  few  years 
past,  had  begun  again  its  annual  visitation  to  the  cities  of  the 
State,  including  Jackson  and  some  of  the  interior  villages,  the  peo- 


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MISSISSIPPI  205 

pie  had  been  blessed  with  unusual  health  and  the  harvests  had 
been  bountiful.  "The  burdens  of  government  rest  lightly  upon 
the  people,  prosperity  scatters  plenty  to  them,  patriotism  subdues 
ambition,  and  we  scarcely  know  or  inquire  what  it  is  that  brings 
us  the  great  blessing  we  so  happily  and  securely  enjoy.  It  is  the 
shield  of  the  government  over  us,  held  by  the  overruling  hands  of 
Providence,  manifesting  itself  through  our  institutions,  and  in  the 
sentiment  of  our  people  which  acknowledges  it,  and  for  which  we 
should  be  ever  grateful." 

The  financial  statement  showed  receipts  in  the  two  years  1854 
and  1855,  of  $826,376;  disbursements,  $905,583;  but  the  receipts 
on  account  of  the  Internal  improvement  fund  and  Swamp  land 
sales,  made  an  apparent  surplus  of  $83,000. 

The  administration  of  Gov.  McRae  was  particularly  memorable 
for  the  actual  beginning  of  railroad  development.  Under  an  act 
of  legislature  of  1854,  the  State  took  $300,000  stock  in  the  main 
lines,  which  gave  them  a  needed  impetus.  In  1856  there  was  no 
line  running  through,  except  the  Memphis  &  Charleston,  in  the 
northeast  corner,  but  some  important  links  were  laid  down,  and 
the  completion  of  800  miles  of  road  in  the  State  was  near  at  hand. 
Gov.  McRae  declared,  "The  brilliant  prosperity  which  they  will 
give  to  our  State,  the  most  sanguine  has  not  conceived,  and  won- 
der herself  will  be  astonished  at  the  magnificent  result."  (See 
Railroads.)  He  advised  the  further  investment  of  $200,000  annu- 
ally in  railroad  stock,  to  be  raised  by  taxation,  until  the  State  had 
a  million  and  a  half  invested.  No  one  doubted  then  that  the  State 
had  the  power  and  the  brains  to  protect  its  own  investments. 

An  achievement  of  surpassing  importance  in  this  period  was 
the  work  of  building  levees  (q.  v.)  supported  by  the  donation  of 
overflowed  lands  by  congress  to  the  State.  J.  L.  Alcorn,  president 
of  the  superior  board  of  levee  commissioners,  created  in  1854,  re- 
ported in  1856  that  there  had  been  a  wonderful  increase  in  land 
values.  In  fact,  lands  considered  hopelessly  unavailable  as  late 
as  1848  were  now  eagerly  sought  for,  tens  of  thousands  of  acres 
having  been  sold  since  levee  protection  was  assured.  There  was  a 
great  area  of  State  lands  in  the  new  domain,  as  well  as  Chickasaw 
school  lands.  The  educational  fund,  likewise  the  funds  available 
for  aid  to  railroads,  were  being  greatly  benefited.  Concerning  the 
school  lands,  "an  exciting  struggle  commences  with  this  session 
of  the  legislature  (1856)  in  permanently  fixing  the  basis  for  the 
distribution  of  the  money  to  the  counties  rightfully  owning  the 
same." 

The  old  struggle  for  territory  between  the  opposing  interests 
of  North  and  South,  after  a  momentary  lull,  was«  now 
revived.  The  proposed  States  of  Kansas  and  Nebraska  were 
the  bone  of  contention.  Gov.  McRae  said  (January,  1856) : 
"The  difficulties  in  the  territory  of  Kansks  have  produced  much 
excitement  in  the  country,  and  awakened  a  feeling  of  deep  interest 
among  the  people  of  the  Southern  States.  Fully  impressed  with 
the  importance  of  securing  that  territory  to  our  interests,  and  for 


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206  MISSISSIPPI 

the  extension  of  our  institutions,  after  the  most  mature  reflection, 
I  have  not  been  able  to  see  how  the  State,  in  her  sovereign  capacity, 
can  take  measures  to  eflfect  that  result;"  but  if  it  were  within  his 
line  of  duty  he  would  earnestly  urge  the  people  to  encourage 
emigration  to  that  country.  He  believed  that  no  matter  how  many 
emigrants  went  there  from  the  Northern  States,  the  Southern  emi- 
grants could  control  it  by  "the  irresistable  energy  of  their  deter- 
mination and  their  will.  If.  the  territory  is  lost  to  the  South,  it 
will  be  the  fault  of  our  own  people." 

The  presidential  election  of  1856  was  one  of  g^reat  interest, 
Buchanan  and  Breckinridge  was  the  Democratic  ticket,  Fillmore 
was  nominated  for  president  by  the  Know  Nothings,  and  Fremont 
by  the  Republicans.  At  the  same  time  there  was  actually  war  in 
Kansas  between  colonizing  parties  from  the  Northern  and  South- 
ern States,   the   skirmish   line   of   the   Great   War  near   at  hand. 

The  adjourned  session  of  the  legislature  beg^n  in  December, 
1856,  proposed  two  more  amendments  to  the  constitution,  one 
prohibiting  suits  against  the  State,  the  other  abrogating  the 
Fourth  and  Fifth  amendments  so  far  as  they  related  to  the  tenure 
of  office  of  members  of  the  legislature. 

The  Democratic  state  convention  was  held  in  June,  1857,  and 
that  of  the  American  party  in  July,  at  Jackson.  Both  adopted  res- 
olutions censuring  Gov.  Robert  J.  Walker  (q.  v.),  of  Kansas,  for 
proposing  to  submit  the  state  constitution  of  Kansas  to  the  popu- 
lar vote,  and  this  censure  was  extended  to  President  Buchanan. 
At  the  election  in  October  the  Democratic  nominee  for  gover- 
nor, William  McWillie,  received  27,377  votes.  Edward  M.  Yer- 
ger,  the  nominee  of  the  American  party,  carried  Warren  and 
Hinds  counties,  but  was  in  a  minority  in  nearly  all  the  others, 
particularly  in  the  north  of  the  State,  and  had  a  total  vote  of  only 
14,095. 

The  legislative  tenure  of  office  amendment  was  adopted;  the 
other  amendment  was  rejected. 

In  his  final  message,  November  2,  1857,  Gov.  McRae  entirely 
ignored  p)olitics,  and  wrote  exclusively  of  State  affairs,  treating  of 
the  serious  condition  resulting  from  the  financial  crisis  of  1857, 
the  general  suspension  of  specie  payments  and  the  worthlessness 
of  the  paper  money  in  circulation  (See  Banking)  ;  the  adoption  of 
the  Code  of  1857,  the  railroads,  common  schools,  public  institu- 
tions, etc. 

During  his  administration  the  State  had  invested  in  railroad 
companies  nearly  $1,500,000  from  the  congressional  funds,  loaning 
$633,000  from  the  Chickasaw  School  fund,  and  paying  nearly 
$800,000  from  the  Internal  improvement  fund,  for  stock.  Only  34 
miles  of  rails  remained  to  be  laid  between  Jackson  and  New  Or- 
leans ;  that  road  would  be  completed  to  Canton  by  the  next  March, 
and  the  line  north  of  Canton  was  making  good  progress.  The 
Mobile  &  Ohio  would  be  in  operation  north  to  Okalona  by  Janu- 
ary; it  was  expected  that  by  the  first  of  January,  1860,  it  would 
be  completed  to  Columbus,  Ky.,  to  connect  with  the  Central  of 


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MISSISSIPPI  207 

Illinois.  There  would  be  two  lines'  through  Mississippi,  from  Mo- 
bile and  New  Orleans,  converging  in  one  line  to  Chicago. 

The  total  receipts  of  the  State  treasury  in  the  ten  months,  of 
1857  were  $1,016,478;  expenditures,  $1,054,469,  including  the  large 
movements  of  the  trust  funds.  In  regard  to  the  Two  per  cent, 
Three  per  cent  and  Sinking  Funds,  a  large  discrepancy  existed  be- 
tween the  books  of  the  treasurer  and  auditor,  a  discrepancy  of 
long  standing,  and  investigated  by  the  legislature  of  1847. 

A  curious  complication  had  arisen,  regarding  the  tenure  of  of- 
fices under  the  amendments.  Even  the  term  of  governor  was 
involved.  That  point  was  settled  by  construction,  so  that  Gov. 
McRae  retired  from  office  on  the  third  Monday  of  November, 
1857,  that  the  Governor  elect  might  be  installed  on  that  day.  This 
was  eight  weeks  before  the  expiration  of  McRae's  term.  Doubts 
existed  also  as  to  the  term  of  judicial  officers. 

The  same  legislature  which  had  recommended  the  amendment 
adopted  in  October  met  in  regular  session  November  2,  1857.  This 
body  had  been  elected  in  1855,  but  it  was  understood  that  the  term 
of  office  of  its  members  was  extended  by  the  amendment  to  the 
first  Monday  in  January,  1858.  The  constitution  provided  that 
an  amendment  after  adoption  by  the  people  did  not  become  a  part 
of  the  constitution  until  inserted  by  the  next  succeeding  legisla- 
ture. The  next  succeeding  legislature,  which  had  been  elected  in 
October,  1857,  would  not  have  a  regular  session  until  November, 
1859.  If  they  were  called  in  special  session,  their  term  would  be 
abridged  from  January,  1860,  to  October,  1859,  and  the  legislature 
elected  in  1859  would  sit  in  November,  1859.  The  governor  rec- 
ommended the  call  of  a  convention  to  revise  the  Constitution,  as 
the  easiest  way  to  avoid   complications   and   remedy  other  evils. 

This  same  legislature,  however,  proceeded  to  insert  the  amend- 
ment in  the  constitution,  and  McRae's  successor.  Gov.  McWillie, 
signed  the  bill,  therefor,  though  expressing  his  opinion  that  the 
legislature  was  unauthorized  to  act. 

McRaven,  a  postoffice  of  Hinds  county,  on  the  Natchez-Jackson 
branch  of  the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  8  miles  west  of 
Jackson.  > 

McVillc,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Attala  county,  on 
the  Yockanookany  river,  9  miles  south  of  Kosciusko,  the  county 
seat,  and  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town.  Population  in 
1900,  43. 

McWillie,  William.  Governor  McWillie  was  a  descendant  of 
John  McWillie,  a  Scotchman,  who,  in  his  youth,  was  a  partisan 
of  the  Stuarts,  was  captured  at  Culloden,  and  finally  released  on 
condition  of  his  entering  the  British  military  service.  His  sword 
and  several  of  his  commissions  are  treasured  by  his  descendants 
in  Mississippi.  His  son,  Adam,  after  marrying,  emigrated  to 
South  Carolina,  where  his  son,  who  became  governor  of  Missis- 
sippi, was  born  in  Kershaw  district,  November  17,  1795.  ^^hen 
the  latter  was  preparing  for  college  the  South  Carolina  regiment, 
commanded  by  his  father  in  the  war  of  1812  was  ordered  on  coast 


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208  MISSISSIPPI 

duty,  and  he  accompanied  the  command  as  adjutant.  Subsequently 
he  entered  the  State  coHege  at  G>lumbia,  where  he  was  graduated 
in  J.817.  In  1818,  having  been  admitted  to  the  bar,  he  began  the 
practice  at  Camden.  Such  was  his  distinction  he  was  one  of  the 
attorneys  selected  by  the  Union  party  in  South  Carolina  to  argue 
the  Test  oath  case,  in  association  with  the  famous  Grimke,  before 
the  supreme  court  of  South  Carolina,  in  the  Nullification  era.  Be- 
ing elected  president  of  the  bank  of  Camden  in  1836  he  withdrew 
from  the  profession  of  law.  Subsequently  he  served  four  years 
in  the  legislature,  1836-40.  He  came  to  Mississippi  in  October, 
1845,  to  live  the  life  of  a  planter,  bringing  many  negroes,  acquired 
many  acres  of  land,  and  made  his  home  in  the  northeast  corner  of 
Madison  county,  where  he  built  the  famous  plantation  home, 
called  Kirkwood.  The  house,  planned  by  a  New  York  architect, 
was  "a  colonial  pile,  with  broad  halls,  large  rooms  and  conserva- 
tory." Gardens  and  wide  lawns  extended  on  one  side  to  the  church 
and  churchyard,  and  on  the  other  side  of  the  house  stood  the  rec- 
tory. Here  from  time  to  time,  all  the  distinguished  men  of  Mis- 
sissippi of  that  day  were  entertained.  Jeflferson  Davis  first  came 
in  1850,  and  was  presented  with  a  Highland  dirk  found  on  Hobkirk 
hill,  the  site  of  the  McWillie  home  in  South  Carolina.  On  receiv- 
ing the  dirk,  Mr.  Davis  said,  "Madam,  I  will  use  this  only  in  de- 
fending Southern  rights."  Mr.  McWillie  was  twice  rtiarried.  His 
second  wife,  Catherine  Anderson,  accompanied  him  to  Mississippi. 
His  eldest  son,  Adam,  was  with  the  First  regiment  in  Mexico, 
under  Jeflferson  Davis,  and  was  captain  in  the  Second  regiment, 
1847,  and  was  also  captain  of  the  Camden  rifles,  18th  regiment,  jn 
1861,  until  killed  at  First  Manassas.  The  other  sons  were  Will- 
iam, James,  Thomas  A.,  and  Richard  L.  There  were  also  four 
daughters  who  married.  In  1849  Gov.  McWillie  began  his  public 
career  in  Mississippi  as  a  Democratic  candidate  for  congress,  and 
was  elected,  the  first  one  of  his  party  to  be  successful  in  that  dis- 
trict. In  1851  he  was  again  nominated,  but  defeated,  that  being  a 
Whig  year.  He  was  elected  governor  in  October,  1857.  (See  Mc- 
Rae  Adm.)  At  the  close  of  his  term  of  office  he  was  a  few  days 
past  65  years  of  age,  and  he  retired  from  public  life,  though  active 
in  support  of  the  Confederacy.  He  died  at  Kirkwood,  March  3, 
1869. 

McWillic*s  Administration.  Governor  McWillie's  term  began, 
under  the  Fifth  amendment  to  the  constitution  of  1832,  November 
16,  1857.  In  his  inaugural  address,  after  exulting  in  the  great 
growth  of  the  railroads,  levees  and  charitable  and  educational  in- 
stitutions of  the  State,  he  discussed  the  sectional  questions,  as 
affected  by  the  Kansas  conflict  and  the  Dred  Scott  decision  of  the 
United  States  supreme  court.  He  hoped  that  disruption  might 
yet  be  avoided,  but  disruption  was  inevitable  if  things  travelled 
as  they  were  then  tending.  An  appeal  to  patriotic  and  conserva- 
tive qjen  everywhere  to  stand  fast,  and  struggle  on  for  Constitu- 
tion and  Union,  was,  "with  thorough  preparation  on  our  part,  all 
that  we  can  do." 


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MISSISSIPPI  209 

Robert  J.  Walker,  a  famous  Mississippian,  had  recently  assured 
the  people  of  Kansas,  of  which  he  had  been  appointed  Territorial 
governor,  that  their  constitution  should  be  submitted  to  the  ap- 
proval of  the  bona  fide  residents,  and  the  majority  should  rule,  in 
regard  to  slavery  and  every  other  subject.  Mr.  Pettus  introduced 
a  joint  resolution  in  the  senate  declaring /'unqualified  condemna- 
tion" of  Governor  Walker,  also  that  President  Buchanan,  to  whom 
Mississippi  had  lately  given  her  suffrage,  was  *'justly  censurable 
in  the  premises,  as  unfaithful  to  the  principles  of  the  Kansas- 
Nebraska  bill,  and  the  cherished  constitutional  rights  of  the 
Southern  States." 

The  governor  called  the  legislature  in  special  session  Novem- 
ber 1,  1858,  partly  to  re-enact  the  insertion  into  the  constitution 
of  the  Sixth  amendment.  (See  McRae  Adm.)  The  first  business 
brought  before  the  senate,  however,  was  a  resolution  introduced 
by  I.  N.  Davis  declaring  that  slavery  was  recognized  by  the  Con- 
stitution and  the  Holy  Bible  and  favoring  the  reestablishment  of 
the  slave  trade  with  Africa.  After  a  prolonged  discussion  extend- 
ing through  more  than  two  weeks,  the  resolutions  were  referred  to 
the  committee  on  Federal  relations. 

In  his  message,  Gov.  McWillie  urged  that  the  levee  system 
from  Vicksburg  to  the  Tennessee  line  should  be  put  under  one 
general  management,  with  power  to  levy  taxes  on  the  lands  bene- 
fited to  raise  an  annual  fund  of  $500,000.  He  also  recommended 
a  general  state  tax  for  aid  to  the  railroads,  none  of  which  were 
yet  completed  through  the  State.  The  legislature  of  1857  had 
appointed  commissioners  to  organize  a  company  to  build  the  GuU 
&  Ship  Island,  under  the  charter  of  1854,  and  subscriptions  to 
stock  were  being  taken.  This  proposed  road,  the  National  gov- 
ernment had  aided  by  grants  of  500,000  acres  of  land,  and  the  State 
had  contributed  $733,000  in  stock  of  other  roads  in  the  State, 
which  the  State  had  derived  from  other  National  donations  of 
land.  The  governor  urged  that  the  State  encourage  this  enter- 
prise also,  out  of  the  State  funds. 

Regarding  the  railroad  investments,  he  said:  "I  have  no 
hesitation  in  assuring  you,  that  notwithstanding  the  present  diffi- 
culties with  which  our  roads  have  to  contend,  that  all  the  invest- 
ments heretofore  made  in  their  stocks,  and  all  the  monies  loaned 
on  the  bonds  of  the  companies  are  amply  secured — and,  also,  that 
the  interest  on  those  bonds  has  been  regularly  paid— ^and  that  there 
is  no  doubt  of  the  ultimate  payment  of  the  principal  as  it  falls  due." 

The  State  had  used  funds  belonging  to  the  State  university 
amounting  to  $650,000.  The  governor  urged  that  this  should  be 
funded  at  6%,  the  interest  to  be  put  at  the  disposal  of  the  Univer- 
sity for  the  maintenance  of  a  Normal  school.  He  recommended 
the  appointment  of  a  "superintendent-in-chief '  of  the  common 
schools,  uniform  text  books,  and  normal  schools  for  the  training  of 
girl  teachers.  "In  my  opinion  this  is  asking  little  in  aid  of  female 
education,  to  which,  so  far  as  I  am  informed,  not  one  dollar  has 
ever  directly   been    appropriated    by   the    State,    though  we  have 

14-11 


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210  MISSISSIPPI 

expended  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  for  the  benefit  of 
thieves  and  murderers  in  the  erection  of  a  penitentiary." 

He  noted  a  revival  of  militia  organization,  the  progress  of  the 
geological  survey,  and  the  condition  of  the  State  institutions.  The 
cotton  factory  at  the  penitentiary,  burned  in  1857,  was  being  re- 
built. 

"There  had  been  an  entire  disorganization  of  the  militia  of  the 
State  until  the  recent  election  of  officers  on  the  first  Monday  in 
October.  ...  I  hope  that  for  the  future  we  will  have  an  ef- 
ficient military  organization.  ...  I  have  had  several  appli- 
cations for  arms  for  volunteer  cavalry  companies,  and  one  for  a 
field  piece  for  an  artillery  company,  but  have  not  been  able  to 
furnish  them,  as  there  are  now  no  arms  in  the  State  arsenal  but 
rifles  and  muskets,  and  they  too  will  very  soon  be  exhausted,  and 
as  there  are  now  numerous  volunteer  companies  being  formed  in 
the  State ;  and  the  amount  of  arms  received  from  the  Federal  gov- 
ernment is  entirely  inadequate  to  meet  the  demand,  I  would, 
therefore,  recommend  that  the  sum  of  $10,000  ...  be  appro- 
priated for  the  purchase  of  arms." 

Considerable  interest  was  excited  by  an  examination  of  the 
books  of  the  auditor  and  treasurer,  from  the  beginning  of  the  trust 
funds  created  by  donations  of  land  by  the  United  States  to  the 
State  for  internal  improvements.  Alexander  S.  Arthur,  the  State 
commissioner  for  this  purpose,  reported  that  the  auditor's  books 
were  wrong  $26,658  and  the  treasurer's  books  wrong  over  $150,000, 
in  the  Two  and  Three  per  cent  funds  (q.  v.),  and  there  were  large 
discrepancies  in  the  other  trust  fund  accounts. 

The  Democratic  State  convention  of  1859  resolved:  "That  in 
the  event  of  the  election  of  a  Black  Republican  candidate  to  the 
Presidency,  by  the  suflfrages  of  one  portion  of  the  Union  only,  to 
rule  over  the  whole  United  States,  upon  the  avowed  purpose  of 
that  organization,  Mississippi  will  regard  it  as  a  declaration  of 
hostility;  and  will  hold  herself  in  readiness  to  cooperate  with  her 
sister  States  of  the  South  in  whatever  measures  they  may  deem 
necessary  for  the  maintenance  of  their  rights  as  co-equal  members 
of  the  confederacy."  John  J.  Pettus  was  nominated  for  gover- 
nor. He,  wrote  Reuben  Davis,  was  "a  disunion  man  of  the  most 
unmitigated  order." 

The  opposition  put  in  nomination  Harvey  W.  Walter,  who,  at 
the  election  in  October,  carried  Tishomingo  and  Warren  county, 
and  made  a  good  showing  in  Marshall,  Hinds,  Panola  and  a  few 
others,  but  received  in  all  only  10,308  votes  to  34.559  for  Pettus. 
It  was  a  remarkable  circumstance,  however,  that  with  the  tre- 
mendous issue  at  stake,  and  despite  the  increase  in  population, 
the  vote  of  the  State  was  12,000  less  than  it  was  ten  years  before. 

In  this  year,  1859,  "the  wealth  of  the  people  was  increasing 
rapidly,  and  the  land  seemed  to  be  basking  in  the  full  sunshine  of 
God's  benediction.  Sectional  agitation  had  reached  its  height, 
and  yet  no  one  seemed  to  realize  that  it  must  result  in  war  and  all 
its  calamities.     There  seemed  to  be  in  every  mind  some  vague 


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MISSISSIPPI  211 

anticipation  that,  however  brightly  these  fires  might  blaze  and 
threaten,  they  would  in  some  way  extinguish  themselves  in  due 
time  harmlessly."     (R.  Davis,  Recollections.) 

On  October  17  occurred  the  raid  on  Harpers  Ferry,  Virginia, 
by  John  Brown,  who  planned  to  set  up  the  banner  of  negro  in- 
surrection. He  was  soon  suppressed  by  United  States  troops  and 
Virginia  militia.  Brown,  an  Abolitionist  from  Ohio,  had  for  sev- 
eral years  been  concerned  in  the  Kansas  warfare.  He  regarded 
himself  as  a  divinely  appointed  agent,  and  hesitated  at  nothing 
as  a  means  to  the  end  of  liberation  of  the  blacks.  His  trial  kept 
alive  the  great  excitement  caused  by  his  raid.  He  was  executed 
December  2,  1860. 

In  his  last  message  to  the  legislature  of  November,  1859,  Gov. 
McWillie  presented  at  great  length  his  views  of  the  crisis,  based 
on  that  point  of  view  which  had  been  inherited  from  the  long- 
continued  struggles  for  "balance  of  power"  in  Congress.  He  saw 
in  the  obvious  desire  of  California,  Kansas  and  Nebraska  to  ex- 
clude slavery,  aggression  by  the  North.  The  presidency,  he  said, 
was  "the  last  and  only  department  of  the  government  from  which 
we  have  any  hope  of  protection."  There  was  no  longer  any  pos- 
sibility of  the  South  controlling  congress,  and  success  of  the 
Republicans  would  be  a  sectional  triumph.  With  an  Abolition 
president,  he  said,  we  would  be  a  conquered  people.  The  Repub- 
licans he  called  "Black  Republicans,"  and  declared  they  were 
identical  with  the  Abolitionists.  He  could  see  nothing  ahead  but 
"degradation,"  and  exhorted  the  State  that  if  it  were  willing  to 
accept  such  a  situation,  "all  the  blood  of  the  Revolution  was  shed 
in  vain." 

He  quoted  the  resolution  of  the  Democratic  state  convention, 
and  recommended  that  "you,  by  your  legislation,  should  make  it 
the  duty  of  the  then  governor,  in  the  event  of  the  election  of  a 
Black  Republican  to  the  Presidency  of  the  United  States  in  No- 
vember, 1860,  to  issue  his  proclamation  ordering  an  election  of 
delegates  to  a  State  convention,  to  be  holden  on  the  first  Monday 
of  December  next  thereafter,  and  that  said  delegates  be  appointed 
to  assemble  at  the  Capitol,  in  the  City  of  Jackson,  on  the  3d  Mon- 
day of  the  said  month  of  December,  1860,  for  the  purpose  of 
addpting  such  measures  as  may  meet  the  exigency  of  the  occasion. 
I  would  further  recommend  that  you  should  adopt  resolutions 
inviting  the  other  Southern  States  to  cooperate  with  the  State  of 
Mississippi,"  etc. 

Governor  McWilHe's  idea  of  what  the  convention  of  Southern 
States  should  do,  was,  that  the  States  should  league  to  demand  a 
constitutional  amendment  that  "no  law  affecting  the  institution  of 
slavery,  or  imposing  indirect  taxes,  should  ever  be  enacted,  unless 
It  should  receive  a  majority  of  the  votes  of  the  Senators  from  the 
slave-holding  States."  To  bring  the  North  to  terms  on  this,  he 
would  have  the  Southern  States  levy  a  tax  of  25%  on  northern 
imports.  If  the  North  refused  these  "just  demands,"  the  "blame 
and  the  ruin  would  be  at  her  own  door."     He  thought  it  better 


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212  MISSISSIPPI 

to  "give  the  Union  another  chance  for  life,"  and  said,  "Secession 
or  disunion  is  death,  while  a  refusal  to  pay  taxes  is  but  a  violent 
disease,  from  which  the  body  politic  may  recover."  If  it  were 
objected  that  this  was  nullification,  he  replied  that  the  North  had 
nullified  the  fugitive  slave  laws. 

In  view  of  the  federal  relations  the  governor  urged  the  arming 
of  the  militia,  particularly  the  volunteer  companies.  "The  mouth 
of  a  cannon  and  the  glitter  of  steel  are  arguments  of  power  much 
stronger  than  those  of  the  brain."  It  was  also  his  duty,  he  said, 
to  call  out  the  militia  to  suppress  insurrection  or  repel  invasion. 
"Men  are  much  the  same  in  every  age  and  nation,  and  the  univer- 
sal experience  of  mankind  has  been  that  the  coercive  power  of  the 
government  is  often  necessary  to  the  preservation  of  the  laws.  This 
has  been  recently  manifested  in  the  atrocious  Abolition  outbreak 
at  Harpers  Ferry,  which  might  as  readily  have  occurred  in  Missis- 
sippi as  in  Virginia." 

A  good  deal  was  said  during  Governor  McWillie's  administration 
about  the  facility  with  which  pardons  were  obtained.  He  defended 
his  policy  of  mercy  in  his  last  message,  and  said  that  "if  you  will 
visit  the  Penitentiary,  you  will  there  see  more  convicts  than  are 
creditable  to  the  State."  He  asked  that  the  legislature  require  the 
governor  to  report  his  pardons  to  the  legislature.  "It  might  pre- 
vent that  indiscriminate  censure  which  is  now  heaped  upon  him 
for  nearly  every  pardon  that  he  may  grant." 

The  New  Orleans,  Mobile  and  Memphis  railroads  were  riot  yet 
completed,  though  nearly  so.  The  completition  of  the  Southern 
railroad,  east  from  Jackson,  which  had  been  delayed  so  long,  was 
now  made  more  promising  by  the  donation  of  171,550  acres  of  land 
by  the  United  States  government. 

The  governor  again  urged  the  appointment  of  a  superintendent 
of  the  common  schools  of  the  State,  a  bill  for  which  had  gone  over 
from  the  last  session.  He  urged  an  increase  of  salaries  for  the 
judges.  He  had  no  faith  in  penitentiaries,  thought  they  were 
schools  for  vice,  and  advised  that  more  money  be  appropriated 
for  the  schools,  and  less  for  continual  enlargement  of  the  great 
institution  for  thieves  and  outlaws  at  Jackson.  The  lunatic  asylum, 
he  said,  was  "the  wisest,  best  and  greatest  of  all  our  charities." 

The  financial  report  for  the  year  1858-59,  showed  receipts,  includ- 
ing sales  of  internal  improvement  lands,  of  $624,000,  and  disburse- 
ments, $707,000;  the  excess  of  disbursements  being  due  to  pay- 
ments on  account  of  Two  per  cent..  Three  per  cent  and  Sinking 
funds,  amounting  to  $150,000. 

In  a  special  rnesage  he  urged  some  provision  for  the  payment 
of  the  Planters*  Bank  bonds,  or  a  submission  of  the  question  again  to 
the  people.  "Such  has  been  the  greatly  increased  value  and  amount 
of  taxable  property  within  the  State,  that  I  do  not  believe  that  any 
increase  of  the  present  rate  of  taxation  would  be  necessary." 

The  department  officers,  during  McWilHe's  term,  we^re  A.  B. 
Dilworth,  secretary  of  state;  T.  J.  Wharton,  attorney-general; 
Shields  L.  Hussey,  treasurer;  Madison  McAfee,  auditor. 


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MISSISSIPPI  213 

Mead,  Cowles.  Secretary  of  Mississippi  territory,  and  acting 
governor  from  June,  1806  to  January,  1807,  was  a  Virginian  by 
birth,  reared  in  Georgia,  who  was  a  candidate  for  congress  when 
barely  of  required  age.  His  election  was  certified  by  the  governor 
of  Georgia,  on  partial  returns,  but  when  his  opponent  made  a 
showing  to  congress  that  the  missing  returns  were  delayed  beyond 
the  legal  limit  by  the  effects  of  a  hurricane.  Mead  was  unseated, 
whereupon  President  Jefferson  appointed  him  secretary  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi territory.  By  virtue  of  his  office  he  assumed  the  functions 
of  the  Territorial  governor,  which  wece  rather  absolute  in  govern- 
ing power,  immediately  upon  his  arrival  in  Mississippi.  A  state 
of  war,  due  to  the  Spanish  menaces  on  the  Louisiana  boundary 
and  at  Mobile,  and  the  Aaron  Burr  expedition,  exalted  his  powers 
in  a  high  degree.  It  would  naturally  be  expected  that  upon  the 
return  of  Governor  Williams  from  his  visit  to  North  Carolina, 
Mead  would  not  pass  into  eclipse  and  become  a  mere  secretary 
without  some  pangs,  and  this  was  the  case.  In  fact,  the  governor 
was  compelled  to  remind  him  in  April,  1807,  that  he  should  attend 
the  seat  of  government  and  perform  his  duties,  or  at  least  permit 
the  governor  to  have  access  to  the  records.  Mead  thereupon  sent 
a  Mr.  Pope  as  his  deputy,  to  which  the  governor  demurred  that 
he  doubted  the  authority  of  the  secretary  to  appoint  substitutes, 
though  he  was  delighted  with  Mr.  Pope  personally.  McCaleb 
("Aaron  Burr  Conspiracy")*  suggests  that  Mead's  suspicions  of 
Wilkinson  had  something  to  do  with  his  retirement.  Because  of 
his  distrust  of  the  general  and  confidence  in  the  people,  "he  was 
accused  of  being  in  sympathy  with  the  conspirators  by  Wilkinson 
and  Governor  Williams  of  Mississippi,  and  dismissed  from  office. 
Nevertheless,  he  was  beyond. question  the  most  efficient  official 
in  the  West — and  therefore  could  expect  no  better  reward."  What- 
ever may  be  the  authority  for  this,  it  is  true  that  Mead  and  his 
friends  accused  Governor  Williams  of  being  in  sympathy  with 
Burr,  in  hope  of  defeating  the  governor  for  re-appointment. 

On  February  1,  1807,  he  fought  a  duel  on  the  Louisiana  shore 
with  Capt.  Robert  Sample,  of  Wilkinson  county,  and  received  a 
wound  in  the  right  thigh  which  lamed  him  during  the  remainder  of 
life.  In  the  following  April  he  was  married  to  Mary,  daughter  of 
Abner  Green.  Upon  his  retirement  as  secretary  in  the  summer  of 
1807,  he  began  the  practice  of  law  and  was  elected  to  the  house 
of  representatives,  where  he  led  the  fight  on  the  governor.  Aaron 
Burr  in  later  years  called  him  "a  vain  man,  of  very  small  mind," 
and  when  told  that  he  never  tired  of  relating  the  event  of  his  cap- 
ture, said,  "I  would  have  supposed  the  episode  to  that  affair  would 
have  restrained  him  from  its  narration."     (Sparks,  Memories.) 

In  his  History  of  Texas,  (1841),  H.  S.  Foote  wrote,  preliminary 
to  quoting  Mead's  famous  war  address  of  1807:  "The  gentleman 
who  pronounced  it  is  now  eight  miles  distant  from  the  writer,  re- 
joicing equally  in  the  comforts  of  an  ample  fortune,  and  in  the 
renown  of  bygone  days;  and  perhaps  reciting,  at  this  moment,  to 


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214  MISSISSIPPI 

some  delighted  hearer,  the  wondrous  capture  of  Aaron  Burr,  the 
Conspirator." 

J.  F.  H.  Claiborne  (p.  276)  describes  him  as  a  man  of  such  flow- 
ery speech  that  his  real  ability  was  obscured.  When  the  regiment 
of  volunteers  was  organized  at  Baton  Rouge  in  1813,  he  received 
a  commission  as  colonel,  but  he  gave  it  up  to  make  a  canvass  for 
delegate  to  Congress;  a  mistake  which  caused  his  defeat  by  Dr. 
Lattimore  then,  and  by  Christopher  Rankin  a  few  years  afterward. 
He  was  an  active  member  of  the  constitutional  convention  of  1817, 
was  a  skilled  parliamentarian,  and  speaker  in  the  legislature,  1821- 
25.  His  later  home,  called  "Greenwood,"  was  a  mile  northwest 
of  Clinton  in  Hinds  county,  set  in  a  lawn  of  fifty  acres  of  Bermuda 
grass,  which,  it  was  said,  he  introduced  into  the  United  States.  He 
was  an  enthusiastic  gardener,  and  often  entertained  distinguished 
guests  in  a  favorite  seat  under  a  cedar  in  the  midst  of  flower  beds. 
The  sword  of  Aaron  Burr  was  one  of  the  treasures  of  this  home 
until  carried  to  Virginia  in  1861  and  lost  at  First  Manassas.  The 
home  was  destroyed  in  1863,  by  the  ravages  of  war. 

In  an  old  neglected  graveyard,  near  Clinton,  a  prostrate  shaft 
bears  the  inscription:  "To  the  memory  of  Cowles  Mead,  whose 
pure  life  exemplified  the  spirit  of  an  honest  man.  Bom,  October 
18,  1776,  died  May  17,  1844."  Beside  him  was  buried  his  wife, 
Mary  Lilly,  born  in  1797,  died  in  1834,  and  his  son,  Cowles  G., 
born  in  Jefferson  county  in  1818,  died  in  Yazoo  county,  1849. 

Mead's  Administration.  Cowles  Mead,  a  Virginian  of  Georgia, 
was  commissioned  as  secretary  of  the  Mississippi  territory  in 
March,  1806.  He  arrived  at  Natchez  May  31,  and  soon  after  as- 
sumed the  duties  of  secretary,  and,  as  Governor  Williams  was 
absent,  the  powers  of  the  governor. also.  It  was  a  period  of  g^eat 
historical  interest.  On  account  of  the  Spanish  activity  in  the 
Sabine  river  country,  he  made  an  agreement  with  Governor  Clai- 
borne for  military  operations,  in  August,  and  ordered  general 
militia  muster.  (See  Sabine  Expedition.)  Mead  was  gratified 
by  the  response  of  the  people  to  his  own  enthusiastic  war  spirit. 

The  troubles  with  Spanish  authorities  at  Baton  Rouge  and  Mo- 
bile were  quite  as  urgent  as  the  Louisiana  boundary  dispute.  (See 
Florida  Acquisition.)  Mead  wrote  to  the  secretary  of  war  in  Sep- 
tember, 1806 :  "It  is  the  general  wish  and  inclination  of  the  people 
of  this  Territory  to  attack  the  Floridas ;  should  one  drop  of  blood 
be  spilt  by  the  Spaniards  on  the  southern  borders  of  Louisiana  it 
shall  be  immediately  expiated  at  Baton  Rouge;  unless  I  receive 
counter  order  from  the  executive  of  the  United  States,  with  an  eye 
to  our  predatory  neighbors  of  the  north  and  east,  and  our  internal 
security,  I  am  disposed  to  act  decisively  and  promptly;  that  is, 
bring  all  the  forces  of  the  Territory  into  immediate  action  and  cir- 
cumscribe our  enemy  in  Mobile  and  Pensacola."  "Sir,  can't  the 
Floridas  be  taken  and  then  paid  for?"  he  inquired  in  another  letter 
to  Dearborn.  Nothing:  but  the  solemn  injunction  of  the  general 
government  withheld  his  arm.  "I  burn  to  deal  back  in  blows  upon 
the    Floridas    the    insults    of    Louisiana."     Another   muster    was 


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MISSISSIPPI  215 

ordered  in  October.  The  commander  of  each  militia  regiment 
was  ordered  to  form  a  mounted  company  to  be  ready  to  move  at 
a  moment's  notice.  This  was  by  the  organization  of  a  battalion 
under  Maj.  Claiborne,  which  marched  to  Natchitoches  and  back 
in  October.  (See  Sabine  expedition.)  The  result  was  great  indig- 
nation against  Gen.  Wilkinson,  though  that  wonderful  man  con- 
tinued to  hold  the  loyalty  of  many  friends.  After  this  Wilkinson 
and  his  confidants  were  engaged  in  working  up  a  tremendous  ex- 
citement regarding  the  advent  of  Aaron  Burr,  in  which  Mead  was 
effectively  employed,  though  he  professed  enmity  to  the  general. 
He  had  written  to  the  secretary  of  war  September  7 :  "The  people  of 
this  Territory  are  impressed  with  a  conviction  in  their  own  minds 
that  General  Wilkinson  is  a  Spanish  officer.  The  old  inhabitants 
all  know  some  facts  which  lead  to  this  opinion  and  seem  astonished 
when  ignorance  of  his  extreme  intimacy  with  several  Spanish  gov- 
ernors is  acknowledged.  ...  I  do  not  hesitate  to  express  my 
fears  of  the  result  of  a  warfare  waged  by  the  United  States  against 
Spain,  and  General  Wilkinson  the  commandant.  Think  not  sir, 
that  I  am  the  humble  follower  of  John  Randolph.  No,  I  believe 
the  one  as  much  a  Julius  Caesar  as  the  other  a  Cataline."  When 
he  had  sent  the  battalion  into  Louisiana  for  the  Sabine  campaign, 
partly  unarmed,  because  Wilkinson  gave  strict  orders  that  no  arms 
should  be  issued  from  Fort  Adams,  Mead  vowed  the  people  would 
never  go  into  a  war  with  Spain  under  the  command  of  Wilkinson. 
In  November  Mead  was  asked  by  Wilkinson  to  send  a  battalion 
of  300  men  to  New  Orleans,  which  he  refused  to  do. 

December  2,  1806,  Secretary  Mead  addressed  the  legislature,  at 
Its  regular  session,  and  beginning  with  the  \yords,  "Called  by  for- 
tuitous circumstances  to  the  performance  of  the  executive  func- 
tions of  the  Territory,"  he  bestowed  upon  them  such  an  oratorical 
effusion  as  no  general  assembly  of  the  Mississippi  Territory  had 
yet  been  permitted  to  enjoy.  At  the  same  time  in  a  confidential 
message  he  asked  assistance  in  thwarting  a  plot  for  the  separation 
of  Mississippi  from  the  United  States.  This  was  his  first  official 
recognition  of  the  Burr  expedition,  which  agitated  the  Territory 
for  several  months  afterward,  and  during  December  kept  the  mili- 
tia in  expectancy  of  a  call  to  arms  against  the  filibusters  from  the 
North.  Mead  adjourned  the  legislature  from  December  12  to  the 
19,  and  gave  all  his  attention  to  hostile  preparations.  In  his  mes- 
sage he  said :  "I  now,  gentlemen,  bid  adieu  to  my  civil  character. 
Tomorrow  I  assume  the  military  prerogatives  of  my  office  and 
shall  leave  you  at  this  time  with  the  fullest  assurance  of  your 
patriotism,  and  in  my  revolutions  through  the  Territory  I  shall 
expect  to  find  you  at  your  respective  posts  performing  the  duties 
which  you  may  be  required  to  execute  in  the  general  defence  of 
our  country."  Col.  Burr  was  in  the  hands  of  the  court  and  re- 
leased on  bail  when  Governor  Williams  returned,  late  in  January, 
1807.  and  resumed  the  duties  of  his  office. 

Meadvitle,  the  county  seat  of  Franklin  county,  is  situated  at  the 
geographical  center  of  the  county  on  Morgan's  Fork,  an  affluent 


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216  MISSISSIPPI 

of  the  Homochitto  river,  and  10  miles  east  of  Roxie,  the  nearest 
railroad  station.  Gloster  is  the  nearest  banking  town.  The  town 
became  the. seat  of  justice  about  1820,  the  original  county  seat  hav- 
ing been  located  at  Franklin,  about  2^/2  miles  to  the  west.  It  was 
named  for  Cowles  Mead,  second  Secretary  of  the  Territory.  It 
ships  cotton  and  molasses.  The  Franklin  Advocate,  a  Demo- 
cratic weekly,  was  established  here  in  1891,  and  is  edited  and  pub- 
lished by  Butler  &  Co.    Population  in  1900,  250. 

Mechanicsburg,  a  post-hamlet  of  Yazoo  county,  15  miles  south 
of  Yazoo  City.  Population  in  1900,  35;  population  in  1906  is 
estimated  at  75.    It  has  several  general  stores. 

Meehan  Junction,  a  postoffice  of  Lauderdale  county.  It  is  at  the 
junction  of  the  Alabama  &  Vicksburg  R.  R.,  and  the  Tallahatta 
Railway,  running  north  to  Battlefield,  in  Newton  county. 

Melba,  a  postoffice  of  Covington  county. 

Melbourne,  a  postoffice  of  Panola  county,  on  Long  creek,  10  miles 
southeast  of  Batesville.  The  station  of  Pope,  on  the  Illinois  Central 
R.  R.,  lies  3  miles  to  the  west. 

McUs,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  eastern  part  of  Pike  county,  about 
24  miles  distant  from  Magnolia,  the  county  seat.  Population  in 
1900,  75. 

Melrose,  a  postoffice  of  Panola  county,  8  miles  northwest  of 
Sardis,  the  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town. 

Meltonville,  a  postoffice  of  Madison  county,  7  miles  south  of 
Canton,  the  county  seat. 

Memoriid  Day.  In  the  spring  of  1867  one  of  the  first,  if  not  the 
first,  decoration  day  service  was  held  at  Columbus,  Miss.  Some  of 
the  women  of  the  town  who  desired  to  scatter  flowers  on  the  graves 
of  their  kindred,  who  had  died  in  the  Confederate  service,  pro- 
posed that  the  people  go  in  a  body  and  decorate  the  graves  of  the 
soldiers.  Some  of  the  men  objected  to  this,  through  fear  of  the  in- 
terference of  the  United  States  soldiers  stationed  at  the  town.  Dr. 
G.  F.  Stainback,  who  had  been  the  chaplain  of  Gen.  N.  B.  Forrest, 
told  the  people  that  they  need  not  fear,  that  he  would  head  the 
procession  to  the  cemetery.  They  met  in  the  streets,  formed  a 
procession  with  Dr.  Stainback  in  front,  followed  by  the  women, 
while  the  men,  most  of  them  old  or  maimed,  brought  up  the  rear. 
On  account  of  the  demonstration,  a  detachment  of  soldiers  was 
sent  to  the  cemetery,  where  they  formed  in  line  inside  the  gate, 
but  made  no  interference.  When  the  people  were  gathered  at  the; 
grav.es  of  the  dead  Dr.  Stainback  offered  prayer,  and  instantly 
every  soldiers'  head  was  bared.  He  made  a  talk,  appropriate  to 
the  occasion,  and  then  the  women  scattered  flowers  on  the  graves 
of  their  dead.  It  was  a  time  of  sectional  hate,  when  hearts  were 
inflamed  with  passion,  or  filled  with  sorrow,  but  the  women 
strewed  flowers  alike  on  the  graves  of  the  Confederate  and  Federal 
dead.  When  Judge  Francis  M.  Finch,  of  New  York,  read  of  this 
in  the  Tribune  he  was  so  touched  that  he  wrote  his  immortal  poem,. 
"The  Blue  and  the  Gray." 


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MISSISSIPPI  21? 

Memorial  of  1792.  This  memorial  of  the  planters  of  Natchez 
district  to  Governor  Gayoso,  dated  December  21,  1792,  is  inter- 
esting as  a  description  of  the  condition  of  the  settlements  at  that 
time.  It  appears  that  the  merchants  had  laid  their  accounts  before 
his  excellency,  whom  the  planters  humbly  approached  in  the  way 
of  explanation  of  their  "distressed  condition."  "The  king  caused 
a  proclamation  to  be  issued  that,  for  a  limited  time,  he  would  re- 
ceive all  the  tobacco  they  could  produce  at  ten  silver  dollars  per 
hundred.  In  going  into  this  culture,  we  had  to  provide  the  nec- 
essary implements,  and  the  charges  thereon  were  enormous. 
Wrought  iron  implements  were  charged  at  the  rate  of  six  reals  a 
pound.  Salt,  fifteen  dollars,  often  eighteen  and  twenty  dollars  a 
barrel.  Osnaburgs,  needful  in  shaping  our  tobacco  into  carrots, 
were  charged  at  six  reals  but  more  generally  at  one  dollar  a  yard, 
And  so  with  all  articles  indispensable  to  the  planters.  Most  of 
our  lands  were  uncleared.  Few  of  us  possessed  much  stock.  When 
our  crops  fell  short  many  of  us  had  no  other  resources.  The  few 
that  had  open  and  well-stocked  farms  had  this  advantage,  that 
when  their  tobacco  failed  they  could  sell  their  corn  at  one  dollar 
a  bushel,  pork  at  ten  dollars  per  hundred,  and  beef  at  six  dollars 
and  a  quarter.  When  the  king  declined  taking  any  more  tobacco, 
the  merchants  combined  against  us,  and  by  agreeing  upon  a  tariff 
of  low  prices,  have  so  reduced  the  value  of  all  descriptions  of  pro- 
duce, that  it  now  takes,  exclusive  or  interest,  one  hundred  per 
cent,  more  of  the  same  produce  to  pay  the  same  debts  that  it  did 
four  years  ago.  The  merchants  last  year  gave  notice  that  they 
would  take  corn  at  half  a  dollar  per  bushel,  beef  at  four  dollars 
per  hundred  and  cotton  at  twenty-five  dollars  per  hundred,  in  pay- 
ment of  debts.  The  first  of  these  articles  the  government  bought 
from  them  at  the  same  price  in  cash.  The  army  contractors  took 
the  beef  and  paid  cash ;  and  cotton  served  as  a  remittance  to  Eu- 
rope and  left  them  a  profit  of  fifteen  to  twenty-five  per  cent.  On 
those  who  paid  them  in  indigo,  they  made  still  greater  profits. 
We  are  now  informed  that  while  they  will  not  abate  their  charges 
for  merchandise,  they  expect  to  have  their  debts  paid  in  silver 
dollars.  They  encourage  us  to  go  into  the  culture  of  indigo,  cotton, 
tobacco  and  corn,  and  after  all  the  expense  of  preparation,  they 
decline  to  take  our  produce  unless  they  regulate  the  price."  In 
closing,  this  petition,  which  Mr.  Qaiborne  says  was  written  by  Col. 
Hutchins,  intimates  that  equitable  prices  would  revive  industry; 
otherwise  "matters  will  drift  from  bad  to  worse,  and  the  time  is 
not  very  far  distant  when  the  planter  must  destroy  the  merchant, 
or  the  merchant  must  destroy  the  farmer." 

Memorial  of  1800.  This  petition  to  Congress  was  designed  to 
suspend  the  extension  to  the  territory  of  Mississippi  of  the  privi- 
lege of  a  general  assembly  and  delegate  in  congress,  but  its  pur- 
pose did  not  commend  it  to  the  majority  in  Congress.  It  set  out 
the  apprehensions  of  the  people  regarding  the  Georgia  land  claims, 
attacked  the  sufficiency  of  the  Committee  of  1799,  represented  that 


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218  MISSISSIPPI 

the  people  were  in  straightened  financial  condition,  and  that  the 
population  was  not  generally  qualified  for  self-government. 

"To  avert  from  this  infant  country  impending  evils  of  so  serious 
an  aspect,  your  memorialists  now  address  the  sovereign  interpos- 
ing authority  of  the  United  States  in  full  confidence  that  the  prayer 
of  a  majority  of  the  citizens  of  this  territory  will  be  received 
with  condescension  and  parental  indulgence.  Therefore  your 
memorialists  earnestly  pray  that  the  honourable  Congress  will 
suspend  the  operation  of  the  supplemental  act  establishing  a  sec- 
ond grade  of  Territorial  government  in  the  Mississippi  Territory; 
and  also  enact  a  law,  by  which  this  Territory  may  enjoy  the  same 
privileges  which,  your  memorialists  are  informed,  have  been  con- 
ceded to  the  Indian  territory,  viz :  That  the  second  grade  of  gov- 
ernment should  not  tiake  effect  till  it  appeared  to  be  the  wish  of  a 
majority  of  the  taxable  citizens  to  have  it  applied."  This  was 
followed  by  an  appeal  that  the  holders  of  lands  should  not  be  com- 
pelled to  seek  justice  outside  the  territory,  in  contesting  the  claims 
of  speculators,  which  may  have  been  the  most  popular  sentiment 
in  the  memorial.    The  petition  was  dated  December  6,  1800. 

Mendenhall  is  located  at  the  junction  of  the  Columbia  branch 
with  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,  31  miles  southeast  of  Jackson. 
It  became  the  county  seat  after  the  building  of  the  railroad,  and 
remained  such  until  November,  1905,  when  it  was  removed  to 
Westville,  the  original  seat  of  justice,  by  an  order  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  Mississippi.  Considerable  lumber  is  manufactured  at  this 
point,  there  being  a  saw  mill  and  one  of  the  best  planing  mills 
between  Jackson  and  Gulfport.  There  is  one  newspaper  published 
here,  the  Simpson  County  News,  established  in  1872,  and  issued  as 
a  Democratic  weekly  by  H.  A.  Geiger,  the  editor  and  publisher. 
The  town  was  named  for  T.  L.  Mendenhall,  a  pioneer  of  Simpson 
county  and  a  prominent  attorney  of  Westville.  The  town  is  pros- 
pering and  has  several  stores,  two  churches,  a  good  school  and  a 
bank.  The  Mendenhall  Bank  was  established  in  1904  with  a  paid 
up  capital  of  $10,000.  The  surrounding  country  is  covered  with 
yellow  pine  and  the  various  hardwoods,  and  the  soil,  with  a  little 
fertilizing,  will  produce  fruits,  vegetables,  grains  and  cotton  lux- 
uriantly. Population  in  1900,  150;  the  population  in  1906  was 
estimated  at  600  and  is  rapidly  increasing.  Under  an  act  of  the  leg- 
islature in  its  session  of  1906,  a  vote  was  ordered  to  decide  on  the 
location  of  a  county  seat,  and  at  a  special  election  held  on  July  12, 
1906,  Mendenhall  was  selected  as  the  permanent  seat  of  justice  of 
Simpson  county.    The  town  will  soon  have  an  electric  light  system. 

Mentorum,  a  postoffice  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Harrison 
county,  situated  between  Bluff  and  Black  creeks,  about  35  miles 
north  of  Gulfport,  the  county  seat. 

Meridian,  the  capital  of  Lauderdale  county,  is  situated  140  miles 
cast  of  the  Mississippi  river,  from  Vicksburg,  and  15  miles  west  of 
the  State  of  Alabama ;  being  on  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  Railroad,  135 
miles  above  Mobile.  It  claims  a  population  of  25,000  and  is  growing 
rapidly.     The  Alabama  Great  Southern,  New  Orleans  &  North- 


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eastern  and  Alabama  &  Vicksburg  railroads  have  their  terminals 
at  this  point.  Its  location,  about  1854,  was  the  result  of  the  pro- 
posed crossing  of  the  Mobile  &  Ohio  by  the  Alabama  &  Vicksburg, 
then  known  as  the  Vicksburg  &  Montgomery  railroad.  Cotton 
and  corn  fields  occupied  its  present  site,  surrounded  by  oak  and  pine 
forests  over  clay  hills  and  bottom  lands  of  the  head  waters  of  the 
Chickasawhay.  Richard  McLamose  possessed  most  of  the  lands  and 
his  plantation  home  was  the  only  notable  residence  in  the  vicinity. 
So  little  did  the  M.  &  O.  regard  the  point  for  a  while,  that  it  was 
with  difficulty  persuaded  to  put  in  even  a  switch  for  a  flag  station ; 
and  when  it  did,  called  the  place  "Sowashee  Station,"  from  a  creek 
hard  by.  L.  A.  Ragsdale,  meanwhile,  had  bought  out  R.  Mc- 
Lamose, and  John  T.  Ball  had  purchased  a  tract  of  80  acres,  and 
both  parties  immediately  began  to  lay  off  town  lots.  They  were  the 
pioneers.  Mr.  Ragsdale's  plat  was  for  "Ragsdale  City  ;'*  Mr.  Ball's 
for  "Meridian,"  he  having  first  secured  a  postoffice  by  that  name. 
The  postoffice  name  was  adopted  for  the  charter,  secured  by  L.  S. 
O.  G.  Greer  from  the  legislature,  January  10,  1860,  when  the  city 
of  Meridian  became  a  legal  corporation.  It  was  several  years  be- 
fore the  Vicksburg  road,  then  known  as  the  "Southern,"  made  its 
junction,  being  delayed  by  having  to  tunnel  the  Tallahata  ridge. 
Meanwhile,  part  of  what  is  now  the  A.  G.  S.  was  finished  to 
York,  Ala.,  27  miles.  This  road  made  connection  with  the  Selma 
branch  soon  after  the  declaration  of  the  war,  as  a  military  neces- 
sity. A  weekly  paper  was  published  by  W.  L.  Spitiks.  When  the 
war  broke  out  between  the  States,  1861,  Meridian  was  a  mere  vil- 
lage with  three  or  four  stores,  two  or  three  hotels  and  a  shingle 
machine.  There  were  two  churches.  Baptist  and  Methodist,  with 
a  union  Sunday  school.  Near  where  the  Insane  Asylum  now 
stands,  a  good  sized  academy  had  been  built,  and  the  school  was  in 
full  operation.  But  things  changed.  The  city  became  a  military 
camp  and  in  due  time  was  division  headquarters  of  the  Confederate 
army.  Early  in  the  year  1864,  Gen.  W.  T.  Sherman,  of  the  Federal 
army,  made  his  raid  to  Meridian.  Gen.  Leonidas  Polk,  who  had 
been  the  Episcopal  bishop  of  Louisiana,  was  in  command.  Having 
too  small  a  force  to  meet  the  invaders,  he  fell  back  to  Demopolis, 
leaving  the  territory  around  the  city  to  the  mercy  of  the  enemy. 
Railroads  were  torn  up  for  miles  in  every  direction  and  many  houses 
were  burned.  All  the  grist  mills  were  destroyed,  and  after  the 
Federal  troops  departed,  women  and  children  were  without  food 
for  some  days;  but  no  direct  personal  injury  was  inflicted.  The 
collapse  of  the  Confederacy  came  in  April,  1865,  and  Meridian  be- 
came a  main  point  for  issuing  paroles.  Everything  was  done 
quietly,  but  in  sadness.  No  complaints  were  made  until  the  days 
of  reconstruction.  Notwithstanding  the  troubles  of  that  period, 
however,  the  city  began  to  grow.  Mercantile  establishments  were 
multiplied,  a  bank  was  started,  and  factories  began  to  be  built. 
But  friction  came,  resulting  in  the  riot  of  1871,  and  the  reorganiza- 
tion of  the  municipal  government.  Soon  after  the  riot  a  census  was 
taken  of  the  city  proper  by  the  board.    The  population  proved  to 


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220  MISSISSIPPI 

be  only  3,881,  which  was  not  made  public.  Meanwhile,  the  first 
cotton  mill  was  established;  but  just  as  it  began  to  pay,  it  was 
accidentally  destroyed  by  fire,  which  was  a  real  calamity.  Failure 
of  the  A.  &  C.  railroad  and  the  burning  of  its  shops  had  already 
cast  a  gloom  on  business,  but  the  sash  and  blind  factory  and  other 
industries  soon  filled  up  the  gaps.  In  1875,  the  burning  of  the 
Phoenix  hotel,  the  most  imposing  building  in  the  city  at  the  time, 
was  a  most  unfortunate  affair.  A  period  of  depression  was  fol- 
lowed by  the  fever  epidemic  of  1878,  which  almost  depopulated  the 
town ;  but  the  following  year  was  noted  for  a  general  advance  in 
prosperity.  The  most  encouraging  feature  was  the  proposed  road 
to  New  Orleans,  in  course  of  construction,  and  completed  in  1883, 
the  shops  being  located  in  the  city.  Great  credit  is  due  Capt.  W. 
H.  Hardy,  then  of  this  city,  for  the  building  of  the  N.  O.  &  N.  E. 
railroad,  and  for  the  introduction  of  a  second  National  Bank.  He 
and  Mr.  C.  W.  Robinson  were  prominent  in  the  work  of  establishing 
industries  and  improving  the  city.  A  little  to  the  northwest  the 
East  Mississippi  Insane  Asylum  was  built,  now  surrounded  by 
beautiful  grounds.  In  educational  matters  Meridian  has  always 
taken  a  lively  interest,  which  has  steadily  increased.  Immediately 
after  the  surrender,  a  Baptist  college  for  girls  was  established,  and 
later  a  Methodist  college,  the  former  closing  out  some  years  ago 
and  the  latter  changing  its  control  and  location.  The  successful 
institution  of  the  present  public  school  system  was  the  prime  cause 
of  changes.  There  are  now  in  the  city  seven  excellent  public  school 
buildings — one  of  them  for  the  colored  people — and  some  costly 
structures,  with  two  to  be  added  this  year,  all  brick  except  two. 
The  high  school  at  its  last  commencement  gave  out  41  diplomas 
to  tenth  grade  graduates.  Besides  these,  there  are  two  denomina- 
tional colleges  for  girls — Methodist  Episcopal  and  Roman  Catholic, 
and  one  Independent;  also  a  boy's  school  under  Roman  Catholic 
control  and  a  commercial  college.  In  the  matter  of  churches. 
Meridian  is  particularly  blessed,  having  seven  white,  and  seven 
colored.  Baptist;  five  Methodist,  white,  and  four  colored;  three 
Presbyterian,  including  the  Cumberland,  white,  and  one  Congrega- 
tional, colored ;  two  Episcopal,  both  white ;  one  Disciples,  and  a  very 
artistic  Jewish  synagogue  in  course  of  construction.  These  various 
denominations  all  have  houses  of  worship,  many  elegant,  expensive, 
and  convenient,  and  ornaments  to  the  city.  Meridian  is  a  city  with- 
out saloons  and  has  been  for  thirteen  years,  and  though  Lauderdale 
is  legally  a  "wet  county,"  it  has  been  impossible  to  secure  enough 
petitioners  to  get  a  saloon  in  the  county.  A  very  destructive  fire 
occurred  in  1882,  which  swept  away  quite  a  number  of  blocks  and 
residences,  and  the  Presbyterian  house  of  worship.  Two  comer 
buildings  escaped,  the  old  "Jones  hotel,"  and  the  Masonic  hall.  A 
Masonic  lodge  was  organized  in  the  town  in  1865,  and  another  later. 
Other  secret  and  benevolent  societies  followed;  the  Odd  Fellows, 
Knights  of  Pythias,  Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor,  Elks,  and  some 
private  clubs.  Avery  successful  Railroad  Young  Men's  Christian  As- 
sociation has  been  in  operation  several  years ;  its  hall  was  demolished 


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MISSISSIPPI  221 

by  the  cyclone  of  March  3,  1906.  The  cyclone  also  destroyed  the 
fertilizer  factory,  two  or  three  "blocks  of  stores,  many  residences, 
two  white  and  three  colored  churches,  and  killed  and  injured  about 
50  persons.  One  of  the  first  advances  of  Meridian  to  city  life  was 
the  introduction  of  mule  street  cars,  and  then  gas  lights.  In  due 
time  these  were  merged  into  electric  lines  and  electric  lights  and 
power.  But  the  most  notable  improvements  were  made  during  the 
administration  of  Mayor  E.  H.  Dial.  These  were  the  adoption  and 
installation  of  a  fine  system  of  sewerage,  the  paving  of  streets  and 
the  laying  of  sidewalks.  He  also  prepared  and  secured  the  adoption 
of  a  number  of  excellent  ordinances.  Meridian  now  has  ten  i;niles 
of  electric  street  railway,  and  many  miles  of  gas  pipes,  water  pipes, 
sewerage,  paved  streets  and  paved  sidewalks. 

It  is  the  metropolis,  and  the  most  important  railroad  and  in- 
dustrial center  of  eastern  Mississippi.  Its  rapid  growth  and  , 
development  have  taken  place  since  the  war,  and  chiefly 
during  the  past  two  decades.  It  is  to-day  a  modern  city  in  every 
sense  of  the  word,  with  its  modern  improvements,  excellent  schools, 
fine  church  edifices,  varied  commercial  and  industrial  enterprises, 
and  its  splendid  transportation  facilities.  The  city  transacts  an 
enormous  wholesale  business,  and  possesses  the  largest  wholesale 
grocery  house  in  the  state,  while  the  Meridian  Fertilizer  Factory 
claims  the  largest  output  of  any  similar  plant  in  the  State.  Among 
its  other  important  industries  are  the  Southern  Oil  and  Fertilizer 
Co.,  cotton,  furniture,  sash  and  blind  factories,  railroad  repair  shops^ 
foundry,  machine  shops,  two  daily,  and  four  weekly  newspapers ;  the 
Press  is  a  morning  daily  and  the  Star  is  an  evening  daily.  Five 
strong  banking  institutions  supply  the  city's  commercial  needs.  The 
Meridian  National  Bank  was  established  in  1884;  the  First  National 
Bank,  in  1883 ;  the  Citizens  Bank,  in  1888 ;  the  Southern  Bank,  in 
1898,  and  the  Peoples  Savings  Bank,  in  1902 ;  the  combined  banking 
capital  of  the  city  being  in  the  neighborhood  of  $1,000,000.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  many  beautiful  and  ornate  residences  of  the  city,  its 
streets  are  embellished  by  many  fine  church  buildings  and  modern 
business  blocks.  Still  other  noteworthy  buildings  are  the  new  Union 
Depot,  and  the  stately  courthouse. 

The  U.  S.  census  for  1900  yields  the  following  statistics  for 
Meridian:  Number  of  industries,  119;  capital,  $1,923,590;  average 
number  of  wage-earners,  1,416 ;  total  wages,  $555,409 ;  cost  of  ma- 
terials used,  $1,700,655;  value  of  products,  $2,980,217;  population, 
14,050.  The  census  ranked  it  first  among  the  manufacturing  cities 
of  the  State,  and  next  to  Vicksburg  in  point  of  population.  Since 
1900  its  growth  in  population  has  been  very  rapid,  and  it  now  claims 
the  largest  number  of  people  of  any  city  in  Mississippi. 

Mcridiait  Campaign,  1864,  see  War  of  1861-65. 

Meridian  Riot,  1871.  The  trouble  had  been  brewing  for  several 
months,  said  Robert  J.  Mosely,  the  sheriff.  (Testimony  before 
legislative  committee,  Journal  appendix,  1871,  p.  1129.)  Joseph 
Williams,  a  negro  member  of  the  county  bpard  of  supervisors,  had 
been  called  out  of  his  house  and  killed,  a  negro  road  supervisor 


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222  MISSISSIPPI 

had  been  shot  from  ambush;  Burton  and  Kaiser,  negroes,  had 
been  shot  by  persons  in  disguise.  There  were  charges  of  official 
misconduct  ag-ainst  Williams.  No  arrests  had  been  made.  The 
political  conditions — offices  filled  by  negroes  and  Northern  men 
who  affiliated  with  them,  and  the  disposition  of  the  negro  popula- 
tion to  run  the  town, — bred  race  hostility  that  was  dangerous. 
According  to  Judge  Robert  Leachman,  there  were  some  men  "that 
may  be  called  desperadoes,"  from  Alabama  or  Mississippi,  who  had 
followed  the  railroads  and  committed  outrages  at  Lauderdale  and 
other  places.  Daniel  Price  was  arrested  under  the  State  Ku  Klux 
law  on  the  charge  of  taking  a  band  of  colored  men  to  the  house  of 
Adam  Kennard,  and  abusing  him.  Price  and  Kennard  were  in  a 
feud,  and  Kennard  was  charged  with  enticing  negroes  to  Alabama. 
When  Price  was  tried  an  armed  party  came  over  from  Sumter 
county,  Ala.,  where  Kennard  lived,  and  was  said  to  be  deputy 
sheriff,  for  his  protection.  This  Alabama  party  of  about  50  was 
headed  by  one  Renfrau;  they  were  boisterous,  made  several  as- 
saults, and  carried  several  colored  men  away,  saying  they  had  es- 
caped from  Sumter  county.  The  Meridian  authorities  permitted 
Price  to  escape,  to  avoid  trouble.  The  sheriff  desired  to  arrest 
their  leaders,  but  was  dissuaded  by  old  citizens.  It  was  doubted 
if  the  Alabamians  had  a  requisition,  to  authorize  their  action. 
Out  of  these  troubles  ^rew  a  white  movement  to  have  the  city 
marshal,  William  Sturgis,  removed.  A  petition  was  sent  to  Gov- 
ernor Ames  by  the  colored  people  to  have  Sturgis  retained  in  office. 
Representative  Aaron  Moore  returned  to  Meridian  with  William 
Dennis,  who  took  the  petition.  Saturday,  March  4,  there  was  a 
meeting  of  negro  men  at  the  courthouse,  addressed  by  Warren 
Tyler,  a  negro  school  teacher,  William  IDennis  (alias  Clop  ton), 
and  Aaron  Moore.  The  report  was  spread  that  they  advised  the 
negroes  to  arm  and  protect  themselves.  It  is  certain  that  Dennis, 
who  was  a  dangerous  character,  advised  violence  on  the  part  of  the 
negroes.  The  white  citizens  resolved  that  William  Sturgis,  Bill 
Dennis  and  Warren  Tyler  must  leave  the  town.  Trouble  began 
that  night,  and  armed  men  were  hunting  for  Dennis,  the  sheriff 
trying  to  collect  a  posse  to  preserve  order.  The  store  of  Theodore 
Sturgis,  brother  of  the  mayor,  was  fired,  and  the  flames  did  not 
stop  among  the  frame  buildings  until  two-thirds  of  the  business 
houses  of  the  town  were  consumed.  Some  negroes  were  also  out 
firing  guns,  and  Dennis  was  heard  to  urge  them  to  prepare  to  fight. 
It  was  a  night  of  terror.  Moore  preached  in  his  Methodist  church 
next  day,  and  the  sheriff  notified  him  that  the  negroes  must  all 
disarm.  On  Monday  there  was  a  meeting  of  white  citizens.  That 
morning  Moore  and  Tyler  were  arrested,  and  with  D«nnis,  were 
taken  before  Judge  Bramlette,  who  was  a  Southerner  and  a  Re- 
publican. When  the  second  witness,  Brantley,  was  about  to  leave 
the  witness  stand.  Tyler  remarked  that  he  would  call  some  wit- 
nesses to  impeach  him,  whereupon  he  seized  a  stick  on  the  judge's 
bench,  and  started  toward  Tyler.  The  marshal  caught  Brantley, 
and  Tyler  made  for  the  sheriff's  office.     Then  the  firing  began. 


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MISSISSIPPI  223 

There  was  testimony  that  Tyler  fired  at  Brantley  and  killed  the 
judge,  others  testified  that  they  saw  no  weapon  in  his  hands.  The 
judge  was  killed,  with  several  wounds  in  his  head  and  body.  Tyler 
was  followed  to  the  home  of  Sam  Parker  and  shot  to  death.  Den- 
nis was  badly  wounded  in  the  court-room  and  left  under  a  guard, 
who,  tired  of  waiting,  threw  him  into  the  street  from  the  upstairs 
window.  Moore  escaped,  and  went  to  Jackson.  He  was  not  seri- 
ously accused  of  mischief,  but  was  pursued  for  some  distance  when 
he  escaped.  Several  negroes  were  killed  in  the  court  room  and 
others  the  next  day,  when  Moore's  house  was  burned  and  the 
Baptist  church  near  by,  which  had  been  donated  by  the  United 
States  government  for  a  negro  school.  This  act  was  blamed  upon 
the  visiting  Alabamian*,  who  were  also  credited  with  raising  money 
to  replace  the  church.  (W.  H.  Hardy.)  Mayor  Sturgis,  promising 
to  never  return,  was  escorted  to  the  train  by  a  guard  of  citizens, 
who  accompanied  him  some  distance,  until  he  was  out  of  danger. 
Judge  Robert  Leachman  ascribed  the  trouble  largely  to  his  im- 
prudent policy,  as  manager  of  the  political  machine,  and  his  in- 
fluence upon  Gen.  W.  S.  Patton,  the  marshal.  W.  H.  Hardy  (Miss. 
Hist.  Soc.  Pubis.,  VII,  206)  estimates  the  number  of  negroes 
killed  at  25  or  30.  He  adds,  "When  the  white  people  failed,  after 
every  possible  appeal  to  argument,  reason,  justice,  or  a  sense  of 
public  weal,  they  brought  into  play  the  lesson  learned  in  the  Meri- 
dian riot,  and  it  proved  efficient  in  the  campaign  of  1875." 

Merigold,  a  post-hamlet  of  Bolivar  county,  on  the  Yazoo  &  Mis- 
sissippi Valley  R.  R.,  8  miles  north  of  Cleveland,  one  of  the  two 
county  seats  of  justice,  and  the  nearest  telegraph  and  banking  town. 
It  has  a  money  order  postoffice.  Population  in  1900,  62 ;  population 
in  1906  estimated  at  400. 

Merit,  a  postoffice  of  Simpson  county,  on  the  Columbia  branch 
of  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,  4  miles  southwest  of  Mendenhall. 
It  has  two  saw  mills,  a  cotton  gin,  two  stores  and  a  school. 

Merrill,  a  post-village  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Greene  county, 
situated  on  the  Chickasawhay  river,  15  miles  southwest  of  Leakes- 
ville,  the  county  seat.  It  is  a  station  on  the  Mobile,  Jackson  & 
Kansas  City  R.  R.,  50  miles  by  rail  from  Mobile,  the  nearest  bank- 
ing town.    It  has  a  money  order  postoffice.    Population  in  1900,  300. 

Merwin,  a  post-hamlet  of  Amite  county,  6  miles  west  of  Liberty, 
the  county  seat,  and  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town.  It  has  a 
money  order  postoffice.    Population  in  1900,  40. 

lifesa,  a  village  in  Pike  county,  on  the  Fernwood  &  Gulf 
R.  R.,  15  miles  east  of  Magnolia,  the  county  seat.  It  has  large 
lumbering  interests  and  a  fine  cotton  gin. 

Methodist  Church.  Mississippi  was  first  entered  by  a  Methodist 
missionary  in  1799.  Bishop  Asbury,  while  traversing  the  length 
and  breadth  of  the  United  States  in  his  annual  visitations  to  every 
department  of  his  church  work,  turned  his  practical  eye  to  the 
new  Territory  of  Mississippi,  and  as  soon  as  the  Natchez  country 
was  ceded  to  the  United  States  he  determined  to  select  a  volunteer 
missionary  and  send  him  to  that  far  off  frontier.     Accordingly, 


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224:  MISSISSIPPI 

at  the  conference  which  met  at  Charleston  on  January  1,  1799,  he 
selected  Rev.  Tobias  Gibson  for  this  hazardous,  but  all  important 
mission.  The  missionary  reached  his  new  field  in  the  spring  of  that 
year.  Mr.  Gibson  had  held  some  of  the  most  important  places  in 
his  conference  and  was  in  every  way  qualified  for  the  work  before 
him.  He  reached  Natchez  by  traveling  through  the  wilderness, 
a  distance  of  600  miles  to  the  settlements  in  East  Tennessee  and 
then  taking  a  canoe  and  making  a  solitary  and  perilous  voyage 
down  the  Cumberland  and  Ohio  rivers  to  the  Mississippi,  where 
he  was  picked  up  by  a  flatboat  and  carried  to  his  destination,  and 
he  at  once  with  zeal  and  energy  betook  himself  to  his  itinerant 
work.  He  soon  visited  all  the  settlements  of  any  note.  There  was 
but  one  protestant  church  in  Mississippi  anrf  this  was  a  small  one, 
built  of  logs,  on  Cole's  Creek,  and  known  as  Salem.  Many  of 
the  younger  people  had  never  seen  a  Methodist  preacher,  but  soon 
after  Mr.  Gibson  began  his  work  he  had  a  church  established  at 
Washington,  the  seat  of  the  Territorial  government,  the  only  one 
of  his  denomination  within  400  miles.  Before  the  end  of  the  year 
Mr.  Gibson  had  established  six  or  eight  other  churches,  and  the 
Natchez  circuit  was  the  largest  ever  known  in  Mississippi.  As 
early  as  1806  there  was  another  circuit  called  Wilkinson. 

It  is  more  than  probable  that  Mr.  Gibson  formed  a  society  in 
Claiborne  county,  six  or  eight  miles  southeast  of  Port  Gibson. 
This  neighborhood  in  a  few  years  became  a  stronghold  of  Metho- 
dism and  sent  many  workers  into  the  field.  It  also  became  the 
scene  of  Lorenzo  Pow's  troubles  in  connection  with  a  watermill, 
and  of  Peggy  Dow's  deep  affliction  over  a  backslidden  sister,  re- 
ferred to  with  so  much  sorrowful  solicitude  in  their  journals.  Mr. 
Gibson  was  continued  until  1802  in  charge  of  the  Natchez  district, 
and  at  the  end  of  that  year  severed  his  connection  with  the  confer- 
ence and  adopted  the  itinerant  system  as  the  best  means  of  spread- 
ing the  Gospel  in  the  new  country. 

The  coming  of  the  Revs.  Samuel  Sellers  and  Miles  Harper  from* 
the  Western  Conference  in  the  autumn  of  1809  was  a. signal  event 
in  the  history  of  the  Methodist  church  in  Mississippi,  for  they  left 
a  lasting  impression  on  their  field  of  work.  Newton  Vick  was 
another  noted  preacher  of  the  time.  He  was  zealous  and  public 
spirited,  and  had  an  interesting  family,  which  was  a  blessing  in 
social  as  well  as  church  life.  He  was  the  founder  of  the  city  of 
Vicksburg.  In  his  house  near  Spring  Hill  the  first  conference  was 
held  in  1813. 

John  Ford  moved  from  South  Carolina  and  settled  on  Pearl 
River  about  1808.  He  is  described  as  "a  model  citizen  of  com- 
manding and  sanctifying  influence."  Four  of  his  sons  became  Meth- 
odist preachers,  and,  at  his  home,  which  was  a  rallying  point  for 
Methodists,  the  second  conference  was  held.  His  son,  Thomas 
Ford,  organized  the  society  and  built  the  first  Methodist  church 
in  Jackson. 

Among  the  preachers  who  did  valiant  service  in  the  early  days 
were  Richmond  Nolley,  John  Shrock,  John  Ira  Ellis  Byrd,  who 


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MISSISSIPPI  225 

preached  in  Mississippi  50  years,  and  Lewis  Hobbs,  John  Lane 
and  Thomas  Griffin. 

The  most  difficult  post  of  all  was  held  by  Griffin — the  Ouachita 
circuit,  but  he  was  an  able  and  zealous  man,  well  fitted  for  his 
work.  He  had  no  education  and  was  poor,  but  he  studied  by  the 
camp  fire  and  the  forest  path,  and  he  mastered  the  hardy  elements 
of  frontier  life.  In  1820  he  represented  Mississippi  in  the  General 
Conference  and  was  not  pleased  with  certain  expressions  of  North- 
ern delegates  on  slavery,  or  the  defensive  attitude  of  those  of  the 
South.  He  made  a  speech  which  was  not  lacking  in  energy  of  ex- 
pression. "It  appears,"  he  said,  "that  some  of  our  Northern  breth- 
ren are  willing  to  see  us  all  damned  and  doubled  damned,  rammed, 
jammed  and  crammed  into  a  forty-six  pounder,  and  touched  off 
into  eternity."  He  presided  over  districts  in  Mississippi,  Alabama 
and  Louisiana,  that  are  now  Annual  Conferences. 

The  fate  of  Richmond  Nolley  shows  something  of  the  trials  and 
the  hardships  of  the  pioneer  preacher.  The  Pearl  River  Conference 
of  1814-15  sent  him  back  to  Attakapas.  He  started  on  his  way  back 
and  on  a  cold,  rainy  day  in  November  came  to  a  swollen  stream. 
He  was  on  horseback  and  tried  to  ford  the  stream,  but  was  borne 
down  by  the  swift  current  and  thrown  from  his  horse ;  he  grabbed 
the  limb  of  a  tree  and  crawled  out,  while  his  horse  got  out  on  the 
opposite  bank — the  one  from  which  he  started.  As  it  was  impos- 
sible to  reach  his  horse  he  left  the  animal  in  charge  of  an  Indian 
and  continued  his  journey  on  foot.  He  was  thoroughly  drenched 
and  chilled,  and  soon  sank  exhausted  at  the  roots  of  a  pine  tree, 
where  he  was  found  next  morning  dead. 

The  conference  of  1816  was  held  at  Pine  Ridge,  near  Natchez, 
at  the  home  of  Wm.  Foster,  and  was  presided  over  by  Bishop 
Roberts.  The  membership  was  at  that  time  1,703  white  and  540 
colored.  The  salary  of  a  preacher  was  less  than  $50  per  year. 
This  was  the  first  conference  presided  over  by  a  bishop,  and  the 
first  one  to  ordain  elders. 

After  the  Indian  troubles  were  settled  the  church  increased  much 
more  rapidly,  and  in  a  few  years  separate  annual  conferences  were 
set  for  Alabama  and  Louisiana,  which  had  been  a  part  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi Conference. 

Among  the  g^eat  preachers  of  this  period  were  Charles  K.  Mar- 
shall   (q.  V.)  and  John  Newland  MoflFet. 

After  1830  the  church  increased  very  rapidly  both  in  its  mem- 
bership and  the  number  of  its  ministers,  and  at  the  outbreak  of 
the  war  there  was  scarcely  a  township  in  the  State  not  occupied 
by  the  Methodist  ministry.  Methodists  and  Baptists  were  the 
most  numerous  in  1835.  The  Methodists  had  53  preachers  and 
about  10,000  members.  The  preachers  moved  every  two  years, 
were  paid  a  salary  of  $100  a  year  and  expenses,  $100  additional 
when  married,  and  $16  additional  for  each  child.  Members  were 
forbidden  to  sell  intoxicating  liauors.  and  no  slave  holder  was  eli- 
gible for  office  in  the  church  if  the  laws  of  the  State  permitted 
emancipation. 

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226  MISSISSIPPI 

About  this  time  J.  H.  Ingraham  wrote  (The  Southwest)  that 
the  prevailing  Christian  denomination  was  the  Methodist.  "This 
denomination  embraces  all  ranks  of  society,  including  many  of  the 
affluent  and  a  majority  of  the  merely  independent  planters,  through- 
out the  State.  Some  of  the  assemblages  here,  in  the  Methodist 
churches,  would  remind  the  stranger  rather  of  a  fashionable  New 
York  audience,  than  a  congregation  of  plain  people,  soberly  ar- 
rayed, such  as  he  is  accustomed  to  behold  in  a  Methodist  church 
in  New  England." 

In  1858  the  church  had  eight  colleges;  Centenary  college  with 
seven  professors,  an  endowment  "worth  $150,000  and  a  library  of 
7,500  volumes ;  Sharon  Female  college  with  a  building  worth  $10,- 
000;  Feliciana  Female  institute;  Port  Gibson  Collegiate  academy; 
Southern  Female  college;  Mount  Herman  Female  institute  and 
Madison  college. 

The  first  Sunday  school  in  the  United  States  south  of  Philadel- 
phia was  organized  in  1827  in  the  Methodist  church  at  Natchez^ 

In  1855  the  conference  established  a  book  and  tract  society  at 
Vicksburg,  which  had  a  business  of  about  $7,000  at  the  beginning 
of  the  war,  but  was  destroyed  after  the  fall  of  that  city. 

Before  the  war,  where  the  negroes  were  numerous,  separate 
churches  were  built  for  them,  and  ample  galleries  in  almost  all 
churches  for  their  accommodation.  The  large  plantations  were 
supplied  with  missionaries. 

When  the  Methodist  church  divided  at  the  General  Conference 
at  New  York  in  1844,  the  Mississippi  Conference  allied  itself  with 
the  other  Southern  conferences.  This  made  no  change  in  the 
annual  conferences,  and  the  church  continued  to  grow  and  prosper 
until  rudely  interrupted  by  the  tramp  of  hostile  armies. 

After  the  war  there  was  desolation  everywhere.  Church  build- 
ings had  been  used  as  hospitals  and  sometimes  destroyed.  But  the 
Methodists  went  to  work  with  such  zeal  and  energy  that  in  1870 
it  became  necessary  to  divide  the  Mississippi  Conference  into  two 
conferences.  The  Southern  portion  retained  the  name  of  Missis- 
sippi Conference,  while  the  northern  part  took  the  name  of  North 
Mississippi. 

The  Methodists  of  Mississippi  now  have  numerous  educational 
institutions,  among  which  is  Millsaps  college  (q.  v.)  Besides  this 
the  State  has  five  Methodist  schools  for  girls.  Whitworth  Female 
college,  Port  Gibson  Female  college,  Meridian  Female  college, 
Grenada  Female  college,  and  Edward  McGee  College  for  Girls. 

The  two  conferences  now  have  more  than  600  preachers,  a  mem- 
bership of  nearly  80,000  and  more  than  900  churches.  The  value 
of  these  church  buildings  is  $905,858. 

Mississippi  has  furnished  two  bishops  for  the  church:  Bishop 
Robert  Paine,  elected  and  ordained  in  1846,  and  Bishop  Charles 
B.  Galloway,  the  youngest  man  ever  ordained  bishop  in  the  Meth* 
odist  church    (1886),  and  one  of  the  ablest. 

Mexican  Wan  While  the  boundary  line  between  Texas  and 
Mexico  was  yet  unsettled.  Governor  Brown  addressed  the  secre- 


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MISSISSIPPI  227 

tary  of  war  in  August,  1845,  asking*  a  part  for  Mississippi  in  "any 
fight  that  might  be  going  on,"  and  was  informed  that  no  serious 
difficulty  was  expected,  but  in  case  of  trouble  the  first  honor  was 
reserved  for  Texas,  and  next  would  come  Louisiana  and  Alabama. 
Later,  Gen.  Zachary  Taylor  was  ordered  to  the  Rio  Grande.  The 
New  Orleans  Bulletin  said  in  March,  1846 :  "The  movement  under* 
General  Taylor  is  important.  The  troops  under  his  command, 
in  *a  delicate  service',  will  take  up  a  position  on  the  Rio  Grande, 
near  to  Matamoras,  almost  within  sight  of  the  Mexican  forces, 
cutting  off  their  communication  with  the  Brazos  of  Santiago,  the 
port  where  goods  destined  for  Matamoras  are  disembarked.  Mata- 
moras is  fortified,  though  not  strongly,  and  the  garrison  at  the 
present  moment  is  too  weak  to  act  against  the  forces  of  General 
Taylor."  At  the  same  time  President  Polk  gave  out  what  was 
called  his  war  message,  asking  for  an  increase  of  the  army  and 
navy,  on  account  of  frontier  disputes  with  Great  Britain  and  Mex- 
ico. Mexico  reinforced  her  military  position  on  the  south  side  of 
the  river.  She  claimed  both  sides.  Taylor  began  fortifying  oppo- 
site Matamoras,  whereupon,  on  April  23,  some  Mexican  troops 
crossed  over,  below,  and  cut  his  communications.  A  cavalry  re- 
connoissance,  led  by  Captains  Thorton  and  Hardee,  was  taken 
into  camp  by  the  Mexicans,  Hardee  among  the  prisoners.  So  the 
war  began. 

Gen.  Taylor  on  April  28  called  on  Texas  and  Louisiana  for  eight 
volunteer  regiments,  and  Gen.  Gaines,  in  command  of  the  Western 
department  of  the  army,  also  called  for  troops  which  he  received 
and  organized  and  sent  forward,  all  on  his  own  authority.  Later 
the  war  department  repudiated  his  action  and  relieved  him  of  com- 
mand. Many  Mississippians  joined  "Gaines*  army,"  and  were 
subjected  to  great  hardships  because  no  provision  had  been  made 
for  them.  Gen.  Quitman  wrote  the  delegation  in  congress  (May) 
that  Mississippi  was  in  the  highest  excitement;  all  were  ready 
to  volunteer;  they  fear  Mississippi  will  not  have  a  fair  chance. 
"We  have  been  ready  from  the  beginning  to  raise  5,000  men 
.  .  .  but  the  door  is  closed  to  them.  .  .  .  We  were  fore- 
most in  the  measure  of  annexation.  We  regard  the  present  as  our 
own  quarrel.  We  feel  strong  enough  to  fight  it  out ;  aye,  if  need 
be,  to  carry  our  eagle  to  the  Pacific.  We  desire  no  aid  from  the 
Abolitionists.  The  Northern  States  question  our  strength  in  war. 
Then  let  this  war  be  the  test." 

Anticipating  a  call  from  Taylor,  Gov.  Brown  on  May  9  addressed 
the  militia  colonels,  advising  them  to  promptly  enroll  the  men  with 
a  view  to  sending  volunteer  companies  to  the  front  on  a  day's 
notice.  It  was  expected  that  companies  (of  64  to  100  men)  would 
be  allowed  to  elect  their  own  officers,  and  regiments  of  ten  com- 
panies to  elect  their  colonels.  Maj.-Gen.  John  M.  Duffield  was  ap- 
pointed drill  officer  to  visit  the  counties  and  assist  in  this  work. 
At  the  same  time  the  governor  settled  a  contest  of  seniority  be- 
tween Maj.-Gen.  William  L.  Brandon  and  Duffield  in  favor  of  the 


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228  MISSISSIPPI 

latter.  Volunteer  companies  were  drilling  on  the  streets  of  all  the 
important  Mississippi  towns  by  the  middle  of  May. 

Taylor,  immediately  after  the  Hardee  aflFair,  withdrew  his  troops 
to  Point  Isabel,  his  base,  leaving  a  garrison  at  his  fort.  The  Mex- 
icans crossed  over  to  separate  the  two  forces,  and  an  artillery  at- 
tack was  made  on  the  fort,  to  which  the  American  artillery,  includ- 
ing Bragg's  battery,  responded  effectively.  The  next  news  to 
reach  Mississippi  was  of  the  battle  Taylor  fought  in  marching  back 
to  his  fortifications,  May  8,  on  the  plains,  Palo  Alto.  The  Ameri- 
cans suffered  severely,  but  Taylor  ended  a  council  of  war  by  orders 
to  prepare  to  advance  in  thirty  minutes,  and  there  followed  the 
victory  called  the  battle  of  Resaca  de  la  Palma.  There  were  no 
great  battles,  about  ,3,000  on  a  side,  but  the  popular  effect  was 
great.  Taylor  crossed  the  river  and  occupied  Matamoras  May 
18.  without  opposition. 

Cadmus  M.  Wilcox,  a  cadet  at  West  Point  then,  went  to  Wash- 
ington with  the  other  cadets,  to  volunteer,  and  talked  with  Gen. 
Jesse  Speight,  senator  from  Mississippi.  "Referring  to  the  war, 
the  Senator  said  the  President  seemed  to  have  been  taken  by  sur- 
prise when  he  heard  of  fighting  on  the  Rio  Grande ;  but  he  might 
have  known,  having  ordered  General  Taylor  to  that  river,  that 
such  would  be  the  case.  Diplomatic  intercourse  having  been  sus- 
pended, and  the  two  armies  confronting  each  other,  separated  by 
only  a  narrow  river — it  could  hardly  have  been  possible  for  them 
not  to  fight — he  deplored  the  heavy  expense  to  be  incurred  by  the 
government  in  carrying  on  this  war."  The  Whigs  were  generally 
opposed  to  the  war,  or  at  least  questioned  the  wisdom  and  justice 
of  it,  but  it  ceased  to  be  a  party  matter  after  the  first  shock  of 
arms,  and  as  the  war  progressed,  it  made  the  great  Whig  heroes, 
Taylor  and  Scott;  and  in  Mississippi,  McClung  and  Bradford, 
while  the  Democrats  gained  but  one  hero  of  national  fame.  Col. 
Jefferson  Davis,  son-in-law  of  Gen.  Taylor. 

Supposing  the  requisition  on  the  State  would  be  for  at  least 
2,500  men.  Gov.  Brown  accepted  conditionally  28  companies  orga- 
nized under  his  orders.  He  also,  acting  on  the  advice  of  Gen. 
Gaines,  began  the  organization  of  a  cavalry  regiment.  But  he 
carefully  held  the  troops  for  orders  from  Taylor  or  from  Washing- 
ton, because  he  was  at  this  time  in  correspondence  regarding  a 
military  expenditure  made  by  the  State  in  1836,  for  the  Seminole 
war,  on  the  authority  of  Gaines,  which  had  not  yet  been  recognized 
by  the  United  States  authorities.  Not  understanding,  or  ignoring 
Gaines'  eccentricities,  the  political  opponents  of  the  governor 
made  a  great  clatter  about  his  refusing  to  honor  the  requisitions 
of  Gaines.  When  the  call  for  troops  arrived  from  Washington 
May  29,  the  governor  replied  that  no  troops  had  been  yet  sent  from 
the  State  by  his  order  and  would  not  be  sent  except  on  regular 
authority,  but  he  was  greatly  disappointed  to  find  that  only  one 
regiment  was  asked.  Later  he  wrote  to  Secretary  Marcy:  "There 
is  very  general  dissatisfaction  in  this  State  at  the  smallness  of  the 
requisition.     We  are  all  astonished  to  see  three  regiments  called 


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MISSISSIPPI  22d 

from  Tennessee,  for  instance,  and  one  from  Mississippi.  .  .  . 
Was  it  because  we  had  waited  for  orders  instead  of  rushing  un- 
bidden into  General  Taylor's  camp,  as  did  Tennessee?  Was  it  be- 
cause we  had  shown  any  backwardness  in  this  Texas  struggle? 
.  .  .  The  truth  is  you  have  not  given  Mississippi  *a  fair  shake,' 
.  and  she  want's  to  know  the  reason." 

Under  the  act  of  congress  approved  May  13,  1846,  "one  regiment 
of  infantry  or  riflemen'*  was  the  quota  of  the  State.  — 

The  governor's  call  for  ten  companies  was  published  according- 
ly, June  1.  By  this  time  some  of  the  volunteer  companies  had  dis- 
banded, and  hundreds  had  gone  to  join  the  Louisiana  troops  orga- 
nized under  the  requisitions  of  Taylor  and  Gaines.  The  Missis- 
sippian  of  June  10  gave  the  following  list  of  companies  tendered 
to  the  governor :  Vicksburg  Southrons,  Capt.  Willis ;  State  Fenci- 
bles,  Capt.  McManus ;  Raymond  Fencibles,  Capt.  Downing ;  Yazoo 
Volunteers,  Capt.  Sharp;  Carroll  Volunteers,  Capt.  Howard; 
Natchez  Volunteers,  Capt.  Poore ;  Tombigbee  Volunteers,  Capt. 
McClung;  Marshall  Volunteers,  Capt.  A.  B.  Bradford;  Pontotoc 
Volunteers,  Capt.  J.  D.  Bradford;  Lexington  Volunteers,  Capt. 
Amyx;  Grenada  Hornets,  Capt.  Judson;  Woodville  Volunteers, 
Capt.  Cooper;  DeSoto  Volunteers,  Capt.  Labauve;  Vicksburg 
Volunteers,  Capt.  Crump;  Lafayette  Guards,  Capt.  Delay;  Law- 
rence Volunteers,  Capt.  Williams;  Quitman  Volunteers,  Capt. 
Parkinson ;  Copiah  Volunteers,  Capt.  Daniel ;  Tippah  Volunteers, 
Capt.  Jackson ;  Attala  Guards,  Capt.  McWillie.  The  first  five  com- 
panies had  been  mustered  in  at  Vicksburg;  but  the  Woodville  com- 
pany took  the  place  of  that  from  Claiborne,  and  the  Vicksburg 
Volunteers  the  place  of  the  Natchez  Fencibles.  Four  of  the  com- 
panies were  at  the  rendezvous  at  Vicksburg  June  7.  Citizens  of 
the  State  in  the  absence  of  any  provision  on  the  part  of  the  gov- 
ernment, put  $30,000  at  the  governor's  disposal  to  pay  the  ex- 
pense of  transporting  and  subsisting  the  volunteers. 

The  companies  of  the  Rifle  regiment  were  all  at  Vicksburg  by 
the  middle  of  June,  when  officers  were  elected.  (See  Miss.  Rifles.) 
Thence  they  took  boat  to  New  Orleans  and  were  joined  by  their 
colonel,  Jefferson  Davis.  While  the  regiment  ramained  at  New 
Orleans,  encamped  on  low,  unhealthy  ground,  many  were  taken 
sick;  some  died,  and  a  considerable  number  were  sent  home.  The 
regiment  sailed  on  the  steamship  Alabama  July  26,  and  landed 
at  the  Brazos,  seven  miles  from  Point  Isabel,  where  they  encamped 
and  remained  until  August  2. 

July  1,  John  A.  Quitman  was  commissioned  as  one  of  the  briga- 
dier generals  of  volunteers,  and  joined  the  troops  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Rio  Grande.  Taylor  was  preparing  for  an  advance  to  Monterey, 
the  nearest  Mexican  stronghold,  and  organized  two  divisions  of 
volunteers — First,  of  the  Ohio,  Kentucky  and  Indiana  brigades, 
under  Gen.  William  O.  Butler,  and  the  Second,  of  the  Illinois  and 
Missouri  brigfade,  the  Tennessee  brieade,  and  the  Third  brigfade, 
under  Gen.  Robert  Pattison.  The  Third  brigrade  of  the  S'='cond 
division,  included  the  three  regiments  from  Mississippi,  Alabama 


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230  MISSISSIPPI 

and  Georgia,  and  the  Baltimore  and  Washington  battalion.  Gen. 
Quitman  was  in  command  of  this  brigade.  Quitman's  brigade 
brought  up  the  rear  in  the  march  out  of  Camargo,  August  19.  The 
assault  upon  Monterey  (q.  v.)  began  September  21.  Quitman's 
brigade  attacked  the  work  called  the  Teneria.  The  enemy's  fire 
swept  away  a  third  of  the  regular  troops  that  preceded  them. 
"Quitman's  brigade,  though  suffering  most  severely,  particularly 
in  the  Tennessee  regiment,  continued  to  move  on,  and  finally  car- 
ried the  work,  as  well  as  a  strong  building  in  its  rear.  ...  In 
this  spirited  charge  Lieut.-Col.  A.  K.  McClung  was  severely 
wounded  and  the  horse  of  General  Quitman  was  killed."  Next 
day  Quitman  occupied  the  Teneria,  supported  by  Ridgeley's  and 
Bragg's  batteries.  On  the  morning  of  the  23d  Davis  attacked  a 
triangular  redoubt  near  by,  and  this  began  a  fight  from  house  to 
house,  in  which  Quitman's  brigade  joined^  reinforced  by  Texans. 
In  five  hours  the  troops  had  penetrated  to  within  a  square  of  the 
grand  plaza.    Next  day  the  city  was  surrendered. 

Taylor  had  made  this  movement  in  response  to  popular  clamor, 
and  was  not  prepared  to  advance  any  further.  His  army  went  into 
camp.     (See  Memoir  by  Mrs.  Davis,  I,  293-301.) 

Col.  Davis  returned  home  for  a  visit,  leaving  Maj.  A.  B.  Bradford 
in  command  of  the  regiment.  December  14  the  army  began  the 
march  to  Saltillo.  Gen.  Scott  had  arrived  in  Mexico  and  ordered 
Taylor  to  cooperate  in  a  campaign  from  Vera  Cruz.  The  troops 
marched  260  miles,  to  Victoria,  under  the  command  of  Quitman. 
Scott  ordered  them  into  his  army,  allowing  Taylor  to  retain  Bragg's 
and  Washington's  batteries,  and  any  one  regiment  he  might  choose. 
His  choice  was  the  Mississippi  Rifles.  They  returned  to  camp  at 
Agua  Nueva,  18  miles  from  Saltillo,  and  were  joined  by  some 
new  regiments  from  Kentucky,  Indiana,  Illinois  and  Arkansas, 
under  Gen.  Wool.  Santa  Anna  resolved  to  crush  this  force,  and  ad- 
vanced with  a  body  of  Mexicans  largely  outnumbering  the  Ameri- 
cans. This  brought  on  the  battle  of  Buena  Vista  (q.  v.)  February 
23,  1847,  in  which  Col.  Davis  and  his  regiment  were  particularly 
distinguished. 

The  period  of  enlistment  having  expired,  the  First  regiment 
returned  to  the  coast,  and  sailed  May  29,  1847,  from  the  Brazos 
for  New  Orleans,  where  they  arrived  June  9,  in  company  with  a 
Kentucky  regiment.  "When  the  regiment  went  to  the  war  its 
numbers  aggregated,  officers  and  men,  926.  It  brought  back  to 
New  Orleans  but  376,  showing  a  loss  in  battle  and  from  disease 
of  550  men."  The  returning  soldiers  were  welcomed  at  New 
Orleans  with  great  enthusiasm  and  addressed,  on  behalf  of  the  city, 
by  S.  S.  Prentiss. 

The  glory  of  the  war  was  subsequently  all  with  the  army  of  in- 
vasion under  Scott,  whose  advance  was  made  possible  by  the  vic- 
tory at  Buena  Vista.  Quitman  (q.  v.)  was  conspicuous  in  Scott's 
campaign,  and  many  Mississippians  rendered  honorable  service. 

Gov.  Brown's  proclamation  calling  for  the  Second  regiment  of 
infantry,  was  issued  November  27,  1846,  and  Vicksburg  was  desig- 


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MISSISSIPPI  231 

nated  as  the  place  of  rendezvous.  The  time  for  which  the  men 
were  to  enlist  was  "during  the  war,"  and  this  was  discouraging. 

December  24,  1846,  Gov.  Brown  wrote  to  Secretary  Marcy:    "On 
the  12th  instant  I  wrote  you  expressing  fears  that  we  should  find 
some  difficulty  in  getting  up  the  regiment  called  from  this  State. 
On  the  18th  I  sent  you  a  printed  copy  of  an  order  accepting  seven 
companies  then  offered  and  expresshig  my  confidence  that  the  re- 
maining  three    companies    necessary    to    complete    the    regiment 
would  be  ready  very  soon.    It  now  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  say 
that  the  regiment  is  complete,  and  will  be  ready  to  leave  Vicks- 
burg  for  the  seat  of  war  by  the  8th  or  10th  of  January.    The  regi- 
ment is  of  the  very  best  material,  and  will  do  as  good  service  as 
any  in  the  world.    It  contains  judges,  generals,  legislators,  lawyers, 
doctors,  farmers,  mechanics,  and  gentlemen  of  every  description. 
I  doubt  if  the  Great  Captain,  even,  ever  led  a  more  chivalrous 
regiment  to  battle.    Allow  me  to  express  an  earnest  hope  that  the 
regiment  may  be  taken  to  that  point  where  there  is  the  hardest  fight- 
ing.   I  risk  nothing  in  saying  that  it  will  prove  an  over  match  for 
any  three  regiments  of  infantry  in  the  Mexican  army." 
\^      The  Second  regiment  was  composed  of  the  Lowndes  Guards, 
*7   /  Capt.  A.  K.  Blythe;  the  Marshall  Relief  Guards,  Capt.  J.  H.  Kil- 
/  Patrick;  Choctaw  Volunteers,  Capt.  E.  Elder;  Monroe  Volunteers, 
/     Capt.  J.  M.  Acker;  Tippah  Guards,  Capt.  A.  M.  Jackson;  Lauder- 
/      dale   Volunteers,   Capt.   W.   J.   Daniels;   Thomas   Hinds   Guards 
I       (JeflFerson   county),   Capt.   Charles   Clark,   Union   Grays,    (Attala 
\     county),  Capt.  A.  McWillie;  Panola  Boys,  Capt.  A.  A.  Overton; 
\    Union  Company  (Lawrence  and  Covington  counties).    They  were 
)    ordered  to  rendezvous  at  Vicksburg  Jan.  1  to  5,  1847.     (Vicksburg 
I     Whig.)  Reuben  Davis  was  elected  colonel,  Capt.  Fitzpatrick  lieu- 
/      tenant-colonel  and  Ezra  R.  Price  major.    The  staff  officers  were: 
;        Beverly    Matthews,    adjutant;    William    Barksdale,    commissary; 
(        Charles  M.  Price,  quartermaster;  Thomas  N.  Love,  surgeon;  D. 
I        A.   Kinchloe,   assistant  surgeon.      (Goodspeed.) 
^  The  Second  regiment  went  to  New  Orleans  in  January,  and  after 

a  stay  there  in  which  it  suflFered  much  from  sickness,  sailed  for  the 
Mexican  coast.  It  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  Grande  the  day 
of  the  battle  of  Buena  Vista,  and  ascended  to  Matamoras,  where 
Col.  Davis  took  command,  relieving  Col.  Drake,  of  Indiana,  who 
marched  his  regiment  to  the  front.  A  letter  from  the  seat  of  war 
said:  "The  Second  Mississippi  riflemen  left  Matamoras  on  the 
14th  (March)  for  Monterey.  This  regiment  has  suffered  awfully. 
Originally  consisting  of  850  men,  it  now  numbers  650.  They  have 
lost  135  by  death,  and  50  are  now  sick.  The  rest  are  eager  for  a 
fight."  In  June  the  death  list  was  167.  134  had  been  discharged, 
38  deserted.  Capt.  Clark  returned  to  Mississippi  in  July  to  enlist 
recruits.  The  Second  was  advanced  later  to  Saltillo  and  Buena 
Vista,  while  Scott  advanced  on  the  capital.  Though  the  men  were 
nearly  all  vaccinated,  they  suffered  from  varioloid,  and  the  few  un- 
vaccinated  had  the  most  virulent  smallpox.  They  were  also  rav- 
aged by  the  Mexican  diarrhoea.     The  colonel  and  lieutenant-col- 


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232  MISSISSIPPI 

onel,  when  nearly  dead,  resigned,  and  Captain  Clark  was  elected 
colonel  and  Lieut.  John  A.  Wilcox  lieutenant-colonel.  Afterward, 
until  the  close  of  the  war,  the  regiment  was  encamped  near  the 
beautiful  city  of  Calderito,  near  Monterey. 

While  Clark  was  calling  for  500  recruits,  and  the  yellow  fever 
was  raging  frightfully  at  New  Orleans,  the  third  requisition  came 
from  the  president,  for  a  battalion  of  five  companies.  Accordingly, 
the  governor  called  for  a  battalion  of  five  companies  of  riflemen, 
July  29,  1847.  Although  several  companies  had  been  organized, 
partly  composed  of  men  from  Col.  Davis,  regiment,  disbanded, 
only  one  reported  by  August  24,  to  meet  the  requisition.  The 
volunteers  desired  to  be  mounted,  and  to  have  the  election  of  their 
own  officers.  The  one  company  first  enrolled  was  the  Chickasaw 
Heroes,  Capt.  W.  M.  Keyes.  October  11,  the  governor  sent  out  an 
urgent  appeal  for  men  to  come  in  singly  or  any  way  to  fill  up  the 
requisition,  and  urged  that  Mississippi  should  not  be  the  first  to 
refuse  to  respond  to  the  calls  for  troops.  The  battalion  did  not 
start  for  Mexico  until  January,  1848.  The  treaty  of  peace  was 
signed  February  2.  The  expense  of  organizing  troops  for  this 
war  were  paid  by  the  United  States,  upon  the  warrants  of  the 
State  officials.  When  the  enlistment  of  the  First  regiment  expired, 
the  president  ordered  that  their  arms  and  accoutrements  remain  the 
property  of  the  State.  After  the  close  of  the  war,  in  the  fall  of 
1848,  the  United  States  army  was  for  some  time  encamped  at 
East  Pascagoula,  Miss. 

Mhoon  Valley,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Clay 
county,  on  the  Southern  Ry.,  6  miles  west  of  Westpoint,  the  county 
seat.    Population  in  1900,  25. 

Michigan  City,  an  incorporated  post-village  in  the  northeastern 
part  of  Benton  county,  on  the  line  of  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R., 
about  20  miles  northeast  of  Holly  Springs,  and  6  miles  southwest 
of  Grand  Junction,  Tenn.,  the  nearest  banking  town.  It  has  two 
churches,  a  flour  mill,  and  a  lumber  mill.     Population  in  1900,  70. 

Mice,  a  post-village  in  the  extreme  northern  part  of  Jones  county, 
on  the  Mobile,  Jackson  &  Kansas  City  R.  R.,  8  miles  north  of 
Laurel,  the  nearest  telegraph,  express  and  banking  town.  Popula- 
tion in  1900,  150. 

Middleton.  An  old  town  of  Carroll  county,  situated  about  2  miles 
west  of  Winona,  in  what  is  now  Montgomery  county.  It  originated 
in  a  little  log-cabin  store,  owned  by  Ireton  C.  Devane,  who  supplied 
the  wants  of  the  Indians  and  pioneers  who  passed  that  way  along 
the  trails  that  crossed  there.  The  first  public  road  in  Carroil 
county— from  Carrollton,  the  county  seat  of  Carroll  county,  to 
Greensboro,  the  old  county  seat  of  Choctaw  county — ran  by  way  of 
Devane's  store.  Gradually  a  little  settlement  grew  up  about  the 
store,  which  was  named  Middleton  from  its  location,  half  way  be- 
tween Carrollton  and  the  old  settlement  of  Shongalo,  a  little  west  of 
the  present  town  of  Vaiden.  Small  &  Davidson  were  managers  of 
the  second  business  enterprise  of  the  place,  and  soon  after  Mike 
Hill  and  Alfred  Drake  established  a  store  here.    At  the  height  of  its 


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MISSISSIPPI  233 

prosperity,  Middleton  had  some  eight  or  ten  stores,  and  the  prin- 
cipal merchants,  in  addition  to  those  mentioned,  were Baker, 

Townsend,  Jas.  Bryant, Hemingway,  W.  H.  Witty,  J.  J. 

Gee,  and  Alexander  Ray.  Early  in  the  aO's  Ephraim  Walls  was 
granted  a  license  **to  keep  a  tavern  and  to  sell  vinous  and  spirituous 
liquors  at  Middleton."  His  successors  were  a  Mr.  Newton,  and  later 
Mrs.  Bridges.  Its  physicians  were  Drs.  Lipscomb,  Satterwaite, 
W.  W.  Liddell,  Dandridge,  J.  W.  Holman,  Allen  W.  Gary,  H.  B. 
Atkins,  B.  F.  Ward,  and  Montgomery.  Messrs.  Gould  and  Carpen- 
ter were  lawyers  here.     Rev.  A.   Newton  and  Rev.  Holly, 

Presbyterian  pastors ;  Morris,  Latimer,  Echols  and  Henry  Pittman, 
Baptists,  and  Rev.  James  Waldon,  Presiding  Elder  of  the  Methodist 
church,  were  the  ministers  in  charge  of  the  three  churches  at  Mid- 
dleton. Mr.  Brown  was  the  first  Campbellite  or  Christian  preacher 
in  this  section,  but  the  sect  had  no  church  at  Middleton.  The 
town  and  neighborhood  were  rapidly  settled  after  the  conclusion 
of  the  Treaty  of  Dancing  Rabbit  in  1830.  Some  of  the  earliest 
settlers  were  John  Gary,  and  his  sons.  Marvel,  West,  and  Allen; 
Warren  Wadlington,  the  Herrings,  Samuel  Jenkins,  William  Bar- 
row, W.  Y.  Collins,  John  E.  Palmer,  the  Townsend  brothers,  Geo. 

A.  Hogsett,  John  HuflFman,  Harrison,  Yelvington,  N; 

McFatter,  Scrivner,  Graves,  Chas.  Davis,  Joyner, 

Campbell,  Reeves,  James  Jones,  Andrew  Woods,  the 

Young  brothers,  James   Pentecost,  John  and   Geo.   McLean,  the 

Whiteheads,  James  Collins,  Jos.  Eubanks, Goza,  Harvey  Mer- 

rett,  Webb,  Jack  Turner,  Hugh  and  Louis  Davis,  John  P. 

Thompson,  Mary  Baskin,  Ned  Inman,  Mrs.  Dubard,  the  Doyles, 

Culpepper,  John  Tulord,  and  W.  H.  Curtis. 

Middleton  supported  two  excellent  colleges,  one  for  young  women 
and  one  for  young  men.  Miss  Murtah  taught  the  first  school,  ' 
which  afterwards  became  the  female  college  presided  over  by  Dr. 
White.  The  male  college  was  a  Baptist  institution,  of  which  A.  S. 
Bailey  was  the  president.  A  vigorous  eflfort  was  made  to  locate, 
the  State  University  at  this  point,  which  was  defeated  by  the  bitter 
opposition  of  the  two  colleges.  The  business  and  population  of 
the  old  town  gradually  moved  to  Winona,  two  miles  distant,  after 
the  building  of  the  Illinois  Central  railroad  through  this  section. 
(See  Riley's  Extinct  Towns  and  Villages). 

Middleton,  a  postoffice  of  Clarke  county,  11  miles  northeast  of 
Quitman,  the  county  seat. 

Midnight,  a  postoffice  in  the  northwestern  part  of  Yazoo  county, 
about  20  miles  northwest  of  Yazoo  city.  Population  in  1900,  55 ; 
the  population  in  1906  is  estimated  at  100.  It  has  several  general 
stores,  a  cotton  gin,  lumber  yard,  churches  and  good  schools. 

Mileston,  a  post-hamlet  of  Holmes  county,  on  the  Illinois  Central 
R.  R.,  14  miles  west  of  Lexington,  the  county  seat.  Population  in 
1900,  40. 

Military  Road,  Old.    See  Roads. 


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234  MISSISSIPPI 

Militia,  State.  After  Mississippi  became  a  State  in  1817,  a  more 
elaborate  militia  system  was  adopted^  which  will  be  indicated  by 
the  following  roster  from  Marscha)k^  almanac  for  1819: 

Commander-in-Chief,  the  Governor. 

Adjutant-general,  Josiah  H.  McComas;  quartermaster-general, 
John  Richards;  aides-de-camp,  Lieut.-Cols.  Joseph  Sessions  and 
Thomas  M.  Gildart. 

First  Division,  Maj.-Gen.  Thomas  Hinds;  aides,  Majs.  James  C. 
Wilkins  and  Robert  Cocks. 

First  Brigade,  Brig.-Gen.  Parmenas  Briscoe,  Colonels,  Willis  B. 
Vick,  Warren  county ;  Joseph  Nicholls,  Claiborne ;  John  A.  David- 
son, Jefferson. 

Second  Brigade,  Brig.-Gen.  John  Wood;  aide,  Capt.  Bailey  E. 
Chaney;  inspector,  John  H.  Robinson.  Colonels,  James  Foster, 
Adams  county ;  John  T.  Witherspoon,  Franklin ;  Eli  Garner,  Law- 
rence. 

Second  Division,  Maj.-Gen.  James  Patton;  aides,  Majs.  John  B. 
Elliott  and  Albert  G.  Ruffin. 

First  Brigade,  Brig.-Gen.  David  Dickson;  aide,  Capt.  John 
.Lowrey;  inspector,  James  Jones.  Colonels,  John  S.  Lewis,  Wil- 
kinson county;  Daniel  McGaughey,  Amite;  David  Cleveland, 
Pike. 

Second  Brigade,  Brig.-Gen.  George  H.  Nixon;  Colonels,  James 
McGowan,  Marion  and  Hancock  counties;  Josiah  Watts,  Wayne; 
William  Stark,  Greene  and  Jackson. 

Gen.  Hinds  resigned  in  1819  after  his  defeat  for  governor,  and 
Samuel  L.  Winston  was  elected  by  the  legislature  of  1820.  Upon 
his  resignation,  in  1832,  Arthur  Fox  was  appointed. 

John  Joor  was  elected  in  1826  to  succeed  Patton. 

Governor  Brandon  reported  to  the  secretary  of  war,  James  Bar- 
bour, in  1826,  that  having  no  inspector-general  it  was  impossible 
to  ascertain  the  militia  enrollment.  The  volunteer  companies, 
numbering  about  one  in  twenty  of  those  subject  to  militia  duty, 
were  much  the  most  efficient.  They  were  given  the  arms  furnished 
by  the  United  States,  and  were  preferred  in  rank.  Commissions 
in  the  militia  were  not  sought  after,  and  the  officers  were  mostly 
men  unqualified  for  actual  military  service.  The  militia  had  quar- 
terly company  musters,  one  battalion  and  one  regimental  muster 
annually. 

The  militia  laws  were  revised  in  1829  by  Chancellor  John  A. 
Quitman,  and  in  the  same  year  Scott's  infantry  tactics  were  in- 
troduced. 

The  five  major-generals  in  1840  were  A.  P.  Cunningham,  John  A. 
Quitman,  Hugh  W.  Dunlap,  E.  L.  Acee  and  Willis  W.  Cherry. 

As  late  as  1848  there  was  no  State  armory,  and  Governor  Brown 
estimated  that  since  the  admission  of  the  State  nearly  $100,000 
worth  of  arms,  received  from  the  United  States,  had  been  lost  or 
ruined  by  neglect. 

The  militia  was  showing  new  life  in  1840,  especially  in  a  consid- 
erable number  of  volunteer  companies.    Cooper's  tactics  were  in- 


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MISSISSIPPI  235 

troduced.  The  most  famous  volunteer  companies  were  at  Vicks- 
burg  and  Natchez,  which  were  social  as  well  as  military  in  char- 
acter. John  A.  Quitman  was  the  famous  captain  of  the  Natchez 
Fencibles.  In  1839  the  Vicksburg  Volunteers  and  Southrons  were 
entertained  at  Natchez  by  the  Hussars,  Fencibles,  Guards  and 
Light  Artillery.  Col.  'A.  L.  Bingaman  presided  at  the  banquet. 
The  first  toast  was  "Our  Country — esto  perpetua,"  followed  by 
Yankee  Doodle  and  three  g^ns. 

Then  came  the  Mexican  war  of  1846-48,  which  absorbed  the  mil- 
itary ambition  of  the  people.  After  that,  in  Governor  Quitman's 
administration,  there  was  an  earnest  effort  to  promote  the  general 
organization  of  volunteer  companies,  and  this  was  the  occasion  of 
discussion  in  congress.     (See  Army  of  Mississippi.) 

After  the  war  of  1861-65,  the  militia  continued  to  be  embarrassed 
by  political  complications,  also  by  racial  conflicts. 

After  the  meeting  of  the  constitutional  convention  of  1865,  Gov- 
ernor Sharkey  issued  a  proclamation  calling  upon  the  people  to 
organize  under  the  militia  laws  for  the  suppression  of  crime,  at 
least  to  the  extent  of  one  company  of  cavalry  and  one  of  infantry 
in  each  county,  and  particularly  urged  the  young  men  who  had 
been  in  the  Confederate  service  to  respond  to  this  duty.  Although 
President  Johnson  had,  at  an  earlier  date,  verbally  authorized  Gov- 
ernor Sharkey  to  take  such  action.  Gen.  Osterhaus,  commanding 
the  Jackson  district,  prohibited  it,  and  the  remonstrance  of  Carl 
Schurz,  then  visiting  the  State,  persuaded  the  president  to  advise 
Sharkey  to  call  upon  the  United  States  troops  to  suppress  disorder, 
and  refrain  from  organizing  militia  until  further  progress  had  been 
made  in  re-establishing  the  State  government.  To  Schurz  the  pres- 
ident expressed  his  belief  that  such  an  organization  as  Sharkey 
proposed  would  not  be  dangerous,  at  least  might  be  safely  tried 
while  the  troops  were  there,  as  the  people  must  sometime  be 
trusted  and  the  army  withdrawn.  Slocum  went  too  far,  in  this 
delicate  situation,  and  without  consulting  the  president,  issued 
his  Order  No.  22,  prohibiting  any  militia  organization;  declaring 
that  most  of  the  crimes  were  against  Northern  men,  army  couriers 
and  negroes,  and  thereafter,  when  such  crimes  were  reported  a 
military  force  would  be  sent  out  sufficient  to  disarm  every  inhabi- 
tant within  ten  miles  of  the  locality  of  the  disorder.  Between 
Sharkey,  Schurz  and  Slocum,  the  president  was  compelled  to  coun- 
termand the  general's  order,  over  which  there  was  much  jubilation. 
"The  organization  of  the  militia  accordingly  proceeded,  and  was 
not  interfered  with  until  1867,  when  it  was  disbanded  in  pursuance 
of  the  reconstruction  acts  which  abolished  all  militia  organizations 
in  the  Southern  States."     (Garner,  "Reconstruction,"  99-103.) 

The  legislature  of  December,  1865,  passed  an  elaborate  act  for 
the  re-organization  of  the  militia,  with  five  divisions  and  major- 
generals,  and  10  to  30  brigades  and  brigadier-generals,  and  regi- 
ments and  colonels  accordingly,  also  a  full  staff,  headed  by  the  ad- 
jutant-general.    Special   provision   was    made   for  the   duties   of 


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236  MISSISSIPPI 

officers  in  case  of  insurrection.    A  State  military  fund  was  created. 
The  uniform  of  the  militia  was  to  be  "cadet  gray." 

The  constitution  of  18G9  put  the  appointment  of  all  officers,  ex- 
cept **non-com's"  into  the  hands  of  the  governor,  and  reduced  the 
general  officers'  to  one  major-general  for  the  State,  and  one  briga- 
dier-general for  each  congressional  district,*  each  district  to  consti- 
tute a  division. 

A  law  creating  a  State  militia  was  adopted  in  the  code  of  1871. 
It  provided  that  the  tax  collector  should  enroll  the  names  of  all 
men  subject  to  military  duty,  and  transmit  a  copy  of  the  same  to 
the  adjutant-general,  the  rolls  to  be  evidence  of  the  enrollment  of 
the  militia.  It  provided  that  the  militia  should  be  organized  into 
companies  and  regiments,  subject  to  the  call  of  the  governor,  ac- 
cording to  the  army  regulations  of  the  United  States.  Also  that 
the  regiments  of  each  congressional  district  should  be  organized 
into  a  division. 

In  1872,  W.  W.  Dedrick  was  adjutant-general.  E.  Stafford  was 
major-general  and  the  brigadiers  were  Milton  J.  Alcorn,  Isaac  W. 
Randall,  Joseph  T.  Smith,  Charles  E.  Furlong,  E.  J.  Castello. 
Rosters  appear  in  the  reports  of  three  companies  organized  of  the 
First  regiment,  negro,  in  Hinds  county,  and  of  three  volunteer 
companies,  the  Columbus  National  Guards,  Columbus  Rifles  and 
Noxubee  Rifles.  A  tabulated  statement  showed  volunteer  com- 
panies throughout  the  State — 171  of  infantry,  31  of  cavalry  and  7 
of  artillery,  with  125,000  men  enrolled. 

The  militia  was  liberally  aided  by  the  United  States  government, 
the  appropriations  available  in  1873  being  nearly  $45,000.  There 
were  21  active  militia  organizations  reported  in  1873.  At  the  be- 
ginning of  1874  there  were  118,219  militia  enrolled,  the  companies 
being  distributed  over  the  State,  •  and  some  were  armed  with 
Springfield  rifles.     (See  Ames  Adm.) 

After  the  political  revolution  in  1875,  the  Catling  Gun  bill  was  . 
repealed  and  the  militia  was  paralyzed  by  the  reduction  of  the  pay 
of  officers  when  on  duty  to  five  cents  a  day.    But  volunteer  compa- 
nies were  encouraged. 

The  Aberdeen  Guards,  of  Aberdeen ;  the  Autry  Rifles,  of  Holly 
Springs;  the  DeSoto  Blues,  of  Hernando:  the  Prairie  Rifles,  of 
Okolona;  the  Oktibbeha  Rescues,  of  Starkville;  the  Lee  County 
Guards,  of  Baldwin;  the  Rankin  Guards,  of  Brandon;  the  Noxu- 
bee Rifles,  of  Macon ;  Tunica  Guards,  of  Austin ;  Lamer  Rifles,  of 
Oxford;  Adam's  Light  infantry,  of  Natchez;  and  the  Senatobia 
Invincibles,  of  Senatobia,  all  volunteer  companies,  were  chartered 
by  the  legislature  in  1877.  The  law  made  them  companies  of 
minute  men,  subject  to  the  call  of  the  Governor.  It  provided  that 
the  companies  might  form  battalions  and  elect  officers.  Its  bene- 
fits were  also  extended  to  the  Columbus  Riflemen,  and  Columbus 
Light  Artillery,  previously  incoroorated.  An  act  March  6,  1880, 
chartered  the  Walthall  Guards  of  Grenada. 

Other  companies  were  organized  and  chartered,  but  Governor 
Stone  reported  in  1882  that  many  of  them  had  disbanded  or  had 
become  disorganized. 


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MISSISSIPPI  237 

Governor  Lowry  in  1886  noted  a  revival  of  interest  in  the  militia 
— "a  number  of  well  equipped  and  splendidly  drilled  rifle  compa- 
nies, some  of  which  will  enter  the  competitive  drills  to  be  holden 
during  the  year."  Enough  new  companies  were  formed  to  ex- 
haust the  appropriations  of  the  United  States  government  for 
arms  and  ammunition,  by  1888. 

William  H^nry  was  appointed  adjutant-general  in  1886,  and  re- 
ported 1,370  men  uniformed  and  active  members  of  the  companies, 
entitling  them  to  aid  of  over  $8,000  from  the  United  States.  In 
the  spring  of  1886  several  companies  of  the  National  Guard  en- 
camped at  Vicksburg  and  drilled  in  competition  as  a  feature  of  the 
Vicksburg  fair.  There  was  then  organized,  May  14th,  "The  Active 
and  Uniformed  Military  Association  of  the  State  of  Mississippi/' 
with  Maj.-Gen.  B.  S.  Ricks  as  president,  for  the  encouragement  of 
a  thorough  military  system.  In  1882  congress  had  appropriated 
to  each  coast  State  which  had  a  permanent  camp  ground  for  an 
annual  encampment  of  at  least  six  days,  $5,000  each  for  artillery 
instruction.  The  citizens  of  Pass  Christian  donated  about  100 
acres  of  land  fronting  on  the  beach,  earthworks  were  thrown  up 
and  cannon  and  mortars  mounted.  The  first  annual  encampment 
was  held  there  August  3-10,  1887,  three  Mississippi  companies  at- 
tending— the  Capital  Light  Guards,  Columbus  Riflemen  and 
Natchez  Rifles,  with  two  companies  of  U.  S.  artillery  and  four 
companies  from  Louisiana.  "Fort  Henry,"  was  deeded  to  the  State 
on  condition  that  it  should  revert  if  not  used  in  any  consecutive 
three  years.  On  account  of  the  failure  of  legislative  provision  for 
encampments,  the  title  soon  reverted.  The  Mississippi  National 
Guard  in  1888  included  24  separate  companies,  11  attached  or  bat- 
talion companies,  and  two  artillery  companies.  In  that  year  it 
was  recognized  by  act  of  legislature,  amended  in  1890.  Benjamin 
S.  Ricks  was  major-general  of  militia,  and  the  brigadiers  were 
W.  N.  Munroe,  Columbus ;  G.  Y.  Freeman,  Jackson ;  E.  F.  Goddis, 
Flora.  The  National  Guard  organization  was  First  battalion, 
Maj.  C.  Lee  Lincoln,  Columbus;  First  battalion  artillery,  Lieut- 
Col.  E.  W.  Morrill,  Moss  Point;  First  battalion  cadets,  Maj.  G.  W. 
McClain,  Starkville. 

The  militia  committee  of  the  Convention  of  1890,  W.  S.  Feather- 
ston,  chairman,  reported  that  it  is  "necessary  to  have  a  military 
force  at  all  times  to  respond  to  the  call  of  the  State,"  and  the 
National  Guard  should  be  used  for  this  purpose,  with  a  limit  of 
1,000  privates,  and  for  purposes  of  drill  be  called  into  camp  at 
least  once  a  year,  and  an  annual  appropriation  of  $10,000  should 
be  made.  The  constitution  of  1890  declares,  "The  legislature  shall 
'  provide  for  the  organizing,  arming,  equipping  and  discipline  of  the 
militia,  and  for  paying  the  same  when  called  into  active  service," 
also  "The  legislature  is  hereby  required  to  make  an  annual  appro- 
priation for  the  efficient  support  and  maintenance  of  the  Missis- 
sippi National  Guard,  which  shall  consist  of  not  less  than  one  hun- 
dred men  for  each  senator  and  representative  to  which  this  State 
may  be  entitled  in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States ;  but  no  part 


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238  MISSISSIPPI 

of  such  funds  shall  be  used  in  the  payment  of  said  guard  except 
when  in  actual  service."  It  is  also  required  that  the  adjutant- 
general  shall  be  given  an  adequate  salary,  and  that  the  legislature 
shall  empower  the  board  of  supervisors  in  each  county  to  aid  in 
supporting  a  company  or  companies  of  the  National  Guard,  with 
its  borders.  The  National  Guard  had,  in  1892,  been  organized  six 
years,  and  kept  up  by  the  men,  aided  by  the  Congressional  allow- 
ance of  1  $8,500  for  arms,  ammunition,  equipments,  uniforms,  etc. 
In  1892,  Adjutant-General  Henry  asked  the  legislature  for  aid, 
saying  "I  believe  I  am  correct  in  saying  that  Mississippi  is  the  only 
State  in  the  Union  which  does  not  provide  for  its  National  Guard." 
The  commanders  of  the  Reserve  militia,  were,  in  1890-92:  Wm. 
N.  Munroe,  major-general;  J.  H.  Brinker,  Samuel  D.  Robins,  F. 
F.  Myles,  brigadief-generals. 

National  Guard:  The  Governor,  commander-in-chief;  Brig.- 
Gen.  Wm.  Henry,  adjutant-general ;  Col.  J.  E.  Halbert,  surgeon- 
general;  Maj^  Lee  Richardson,  aide.  James  R.  Davis,  Biloxi, 
majof-general  commanding;  J.  S.  Billups,  Columbus,  brigadier- 
general  First  brigade.  First  regiment  infantry,  R.  M.  Levy,  West 
Point,  colOirel;  Second' regiment,  infantry,  C.  L.  Lincoln,  Colum- 
bus,^* colonel;.  Third  regiment,  infantry,  George  S.  Green,  Jack- 
son, colonel ;  First  cadet  battalion,  A.  &  M.  college ;  First  artillery 
battalion;  battery  A,  Vicksburg;  B,  Scranton;  C,  Bay  St.  Louis; 
D,  Biloxi;  F,  Pass  Christian,  Lt.-Col.  E.  W.  Morrell,  Biloxi,  com- 
manding; First  cavalry  battalion,  Maj.  W.  A.  Love,  Crawford,  two 
companies.  In  May,' 1893,  two  companies  of  the  guard  were  called 
out  by  the  governor  to  protect  the  jail  at  Brookhaven  from  attack 
by  a  company  of  white-capper  sympathizers,  who  had  been  re- 
pulsed in  one  attempt  to  release  ten  men  held  on  the  charge  of 
whitecapping. 

The  Third  regiment  went  into  camp  at  their  own  expense,  at 
Cooper's  Wells,  in  August,  1893. 

In  1894  an  annual  appropriation  of  $3,600  was  made,  not  to  be 

available,  however,  except  when  the  guard  should  be  called  out  to 

,    suppress  violation  of  law.    The  railroads  gave  free  transportation, 

I    and  an  annual  encampment  was  held  at  Meridian — Camp  Stephen 

-J    D.  Lee — in  1894,  and  another  at  Columbus  in  July,  1895, — Camp 

John  M.  Stone.    At  this  time  Alabama  was  appropriating  $23,000 

annually  for  encampments^ 

The  encampments  were  held,  as  a  matter  of  city  enterprise  with 
railroad  cooperation,  at  Jackson  in  1896,  and  Vicksburg  in  1897. 
J.  S.  Billups  was  then  major-general  commanding;  S.  S.  Morrow, 
colonel  First  regiment;  C.  L.  Lincoln,  colonel.  Second  regiment; 
George  C.  Hoskins,  colonel  Third  regiment;  E.  W.  Morrill,  colonel 
First  regiment  artillery ;  J.  H.  Cook,  major  First  cavalry  squadron ; 
R.  W.  Barnett,  major  Cadets.  The  aggregate  membership  was 
1,795. 

When  President  McKinley  called  for  two  regiments  from  Mis- 
sissippi in  1898,  the  governor  invited  the  captains  of  the  National 
Guard  to  report  how  many  of  their  men  were  willing  to  enlist. 


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MISSISSIPPI  239 

In  response  the  guard  went  into  camp  at  Jackson ;  seventy-five  per 
cent,  of  the  officers  and  men  tendered  their  services ;  sixty-five  per 
cent,  passed  the  examinations  and  served  until  the  close  of  hostili- 
ties. At  the  beginning  of  the  war  of  1898  the  regimental  com- 
manders were  Col.  S.  S.  Morrow,  First  infantry;  Col.  C.  L. 
Lincoln,  Second  infantry;  Lt.-C-ol.  Devereaux  Shields,  Third  in- 
fantry ;  Col.  E.  W.  Morrill,  First  artillery ;  Maj.  J.  H.  Cook,  First 
cavalry.  After  the  war  the  Guard  was  reorganized,  with  the  same 
number  of  regiments,  and  R.  M.  Levy  became  colonel  of  the  Firsts 
C.  R.  Shannon  of  the  Second,  and  T.  H.  Shields  of  the  Third  infan- 
try. 

No  encampment  was  had  in  1900,  the  legislature  not  providing 
therefor.  The  encampment  of  1901,  to  have  been  at  Greenville, 
was  abandoned  on  account  of  wet  weather.  The  second  battalion,. 
Third  regiment,  encamped  at  Natchez.  The  entire  national  guard 
went  into  camp  at  Biloxi  in  August,  1904.  No  troops  were  sent 
to  the  Fall  Manoeuvres  in  Kentucky. 

The  annual  encampment  of  1905  was  to  have  been  held  at  Gulf- 
port,  but  was  prevented  by  the  yellow  fever,  during  the  prevalence 
of  which  details  from  all  the  regiments  were  used  as  quarantine 
guards. 

The  National  Guard  is  supported  in  Mississippi  mainly  by  ap- 
propriations by  the  United  States  congress.  The  State  appropria- 
tion for  1904-05  was  $7,500  a  year,  of  which  $2,000  is  not  available 
except  in  case  of  emergency. 

At  the  beginning  of  his  administration  Governor  Vardaman 
appointed  Arthur  Fridge  adjutant-general,  and  Maj.  S.  R.  Keesler 
major-general.  A  general  inspection  was  made  by  Maj.  R.  W. 
Dowdy,  U.  S.  A. 

The  roster  of  1905  was,  James  K.  Vardaman,  commander  in 
chief;  staff:  Gen.  Arthur  Fridge,  adjutant-general;  Colonels  R.  M. 
McGehee,  chief  of  engineers;  C.  Lee  Crum,  judge  advocate  gen- 
eral; Walter  Weaver,  paymaster  general;  R.  C.  Rachford,  com- 
missary general;  Y.  D.  Lott,  inspector  general;  C.  C.  Wyatt, 
inspector  general  of  R.  P.;  W.  S.  Vardaman,  quartermaster  gen- 
eral ;  Horton  Frizell,  surgeon  general ;  W.  T.  Boiling,  chaplain ; 
J.  D.  Money,  chief  of  artillery,  and  eighteen  aide-de-camps.  S.  R. 
Keesler,  Greenwood,  major-general  commanding;  Col.  S.  L.  Gwin,. 
adjutant-general,  and  full  staff;  First  regiment  infantry,  Col.  Sam 
Montgomery,  Greenville;  Lieut.-Col.  John  P.  Mayo,  Columbus — 
including  First  battalion;  Maj.  George  A.  Wilson,  Lexington; 
Second  battalion,  Maj.  B.  A.  Lincoln,  Columbus;  Third  battalion,. 
Maj.  O.  M.  Lawrence,  Booneville.  Second  regiment  infantry. 
Col.  Sam  L.  McCants,  Meridian;  Lieut.-Col.  Virgil  Jones,  Hat- 
tiesburg — including  First  battalion,  Maj.  J.  H.  Buschman,  Hatties- 
burg;  Second  battalion,  Maj.  Homer  Brett,  Meridian.  Third 
regiment  infantry,  Col.  E.  B.  Baker,  Natchez;  Lieut.-Col.  J.  J. 
Hayes,  Vicksburg — including  First  battalion,  Maj.  D.  D.  Ewing,. 
Brookhaven;  Second  battalion,  Maj.  J.  N.  Stone,  Natchez.     First 


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240  MISSISSIPPI 

battalion  artillery,  Maj.  W.  H.  Brown,  Meridian,  including  Vicks- 
burg  and  Meridian  batteries. 

Militia,  Territorial.  The  first  important  order  issued  by  Gover- 
nor Sargent,  September  8,  1798,  was  for  the  organization  of  the 
militia,  to  include  all  free  male  inhabitants  in  the  Territory  be- 
tween the  ages  of  16  and  50.  For  military  duty  they  were  to  be 
divided  equally  into  companies  of  horse  and  foot,  the  companies 
to  include  64  men,  rank  and  file.  The  general  organization  would 
be  in  two  legions,  under  the  command  of  lieutenant-colonels,  one 
in  each  district  or  county,  above  and  below  F,airchild*s  creek. 
The  first  Saturday  of  each  month  was  fixed  as  assembly  and  drill 
day,  besides  four  field  days  in  each  year.  The  following  officers 
were  named  in  the  order:  For  the  Upper  district:  Cato  West, 
lieutenant-colonel;  Narsworthy  Hunter,  major  of  horse;  John. 
Girault,  major  of  foot;  Thomas  Green,  Richard  Harrison  and 
Thomas  Calvit,  captains  of  horse ;  James  Truly,  Jesse  Harper  and 
George  W.  Humphreys,  lieutenants  of  horse ;  George  Sulzer,  Lacy 
Rumsey  and  James  Spain,  comets ;  Roger  Dixon,  Tobias  Brashear, 
and  Arthur.  Carney,  captains  of  foot;  John  Brooks,  James  Mcln- 
tyre  and  Gibson  Clark,  lieutenants;  William  Smith,  James  Daven- 
port and  Eden  Brashears,  ensigns;  James  Mclntyre,  adjutant. 

For  the  lower  district,  the  lieutenant-colonel  was  not  named. 
Benajah  Osman  and  Sutton  Bankes,  majors  of  horse  and  foot; 
Benjamin  Farrar,  William  Moore  and  David  Ferguson,  captains 
of  horse;  William  Mcintosh,  George  Cochran  and  Jo'hn  Minor, 
lieutenants;  John  Lintot,  Hampton  White  and  Charles  Surget, 
cornets:  John  Ellis,  Adam  Bingaman,  and  Joseph  Calvit,  captains 
of  foot;  Abraham  Ellis,  Daniel  Grafton  and  Philander  Smith, 
lieutenants;  John  Wall,  Samuel  Hutchins  and  William  Dunbar, 
Jr.,  ensigns;  John  Wall,  adjutant. 

The  choice  of  uniform  was  left  to  the  officers,  and  it  appears  to 
have  been  blue  and  red  in  colors,  which  the  governor  approved. 
Col.  West  reported  in  November  that  several  officers  had  declined 
commissions,  notable  among  them,  Maj.  Narsworthy  Hunter,  who 
became  the  leader  of  an  opposition  to  the  governor.  Consequently 
some  changes  were  made  in  the  list.  Richard  Harrison  was  given 
the  rank  declined  by  Hunter;  George  Salier  and  John  Brooks 
were  made  lieutenants  in  place  of  Harper  and  Humphreys;  Will- 
iam Thomas  and  Henry  Green  were  made  captains  of  cavalry,  in 
place  of  Thomas  Green  and  Harrison. 

The  militia  laws  were  revised  after  the  law  making  body  was 
organized.  The  first  law  enacted  in  Mississippi  Territory  by  the 
governor  and  judges  was  the  militia  act  of  February  28,  1799. 
Daniel  Clark  was  then  made  lieutenant-colonel  for  Adams  county, 
Banajah  Osmun  and  John  Ellis,  majors.  Upon  the  death  of  Clark, 
Osmun  became  lieutenant-colonel.  In  Pickering  county  John 
Girault  was  made  lieutenant-colonel,  Roger  Dixon  and  Richard 
Harrison,  majors. 

On  Governor  Claiborne's  arrival,  1801,  he  found  that  Governor 
Sargent,  notwithstanding    the    exercise    of    great    exertions,    had 


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MISSISSIPPI  241 

been  unable  to  organize  the  militia.  There  were  no  arms,  either 
in  the  hands  of  citizens  or  available,  and  the  secretary  of  state 
was  asked  to  send  to  Natchez  about  400  muskets  and  as  many 
rifles.  **Until  the  militia  of  this  Territory  are  well  armed  and 
disciplined,  my  mind  will  not  be  tranquil,"  wrote  the  governor. 
''^Bordering  upon  the  dominion  of  a  foreign  power,  separated  from 
the  nearest  State  (Tennessee)  by  a  wilderness  of  six  hundred  miles 
in  extent ;  in  the  neighborhood  of  numerous  savage  tribes  and  with 
a  population  of  negroes  nearly  equal  to  the  number  of  whites; 
there  exists  uncertainty  for  peace,  and  our  best  reliance  for  safety 
must  depend  upon  a  well  armed  and  well  trained  militia." 

The  governor  labored  earnestly  toward  organization,  but  found 
the  obstacles  many.  He  asked  Gen.  Wilkinson  to  put  a  blockhouse 
in  the  center  of  the  settlements,  to  be  used  for  an  armory  to  store 
such  guns  as  could  be  spared  from  the  fort. 

The  militia  appointments  at  the  beginning  of  Governor  Clai- 
borne's administration  were  as  follows:  Adams  county:  Banajah 
Osmun,  lieutenant-colonel  commanding;  Abram  Ellis  and  Rich- 
ard King,  majors.  JeflFerson  county:  Zachariah  Kirkland  and 
William  Thomas,  majors.  Washington  county:  John  Caller  and 
Nathaniel  Christmas,  majors.  Claiborne  county:  Daniel  Burnet, 
lieutenant-colonel;  William  Neely,  major.  Wilkinson  county: 
John  Ellis,  lieutenant-colonel;  Richard  Butler,  major.  Artillery 
in  Natchez :  Samuel  Postlethwait,  captain ;  Joseph  A.  Parrott,  first 
lieutenant;  Joseph  Newman,  second  lieutenant.  Israel  E.  Trask, 
"brigade  major  and  inspector. 

In  April,  through  the  order  of  Wilkinson  Capt.  Postlethwait  was 
supplied  with  a  brass  fieldpiece,  16  flannel  cartridges,  and  40  stand 
of  arms,  so  that  Natchez,  at  least,  was  equipped  for  war. 

In  the  fall  of  1802,  the  militia  was  pretty  well  organized,  under 
the  brigade  command  of  Col.  Osmun,  whom  Claiborne  recom- 
mended for  commission  by  the  president  as  brigadier-general. 
In  October,  Brigade-major  Trask  was  sent  to  Washington  county 
to  organize  the  militia  on  the  Tombigbee. 

Thirty-three  boxes  of  rifles  arrived  in  December,  1802,  and  were 
distributed,  each  recipient  to  pay  for  his  rifle  $14  in  cotton. 

In  December,  1802,  the  governor  appointed  as  his  senior  aide, 
Capt.  F.  L.  Claiborne;  junior  aide,  Capt.  William  Scott,  both 
lately  of  the  rank  named  in  the  United  States  service.  Scott  was 
promoted  to  lieutenant-colonel  and  aide  in  1805.  Other  aides  were 
Wm.  H.  A^'^oold ridge,  John  F.  Carmichael,  Joseph  Bowman,  Nich- 
olas Perkins,  Wm.  B.  Shields,  Joseph  Sessions,  down  to  1812. 
Isaac  Gnion  was  appointed  brigade  inspector  in  1805,  and  suc- 
ceeded by  William  Scott  in  1806.  Andrew  Marschalk  was  brigade 
major  in  1810;  adjutant  and  inspector,  1811;  Joseph  P.  Kennedy, 
brigf^de  m^ior  east  of  Pearl,  1811. 

Af^-er  Governor  Claiborne  went  to  New  Orleans,  the  militia  con- 
tinued n<5  before  to  be  one  of  the  main  subjects  of  the  governor's 
me<5s^5re«?.  as  the  danger  of  foreign  war  was  seldom  allayed  until 
after  1P15.     There  was  another  danger  also,  constantly  felt. 

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2^2  MISSISSIPPI 

Acting-Governor  Cato  West  said  in  his  message  of  December, 
1804,  that  whatever  security  was  felt  because  of  the  cession  of 
Louisiana,  "It  is  incumbent  on  us,  notwithstanding,  to  use  all 
the  means  in  our  power  in  preparing  to  repel  hostile  attacks  and 
suppress  insurrections  of  slaves,  for  events  of  the  kind  we  have  no 
assurance  will  not  happen;  to  this  end  a  well  organized  and  effec- 
tive militia  is  indispensable.  The  citizens  of  a  free  government 
ought  to  take  pride  in  assuming  the  character  of  soldiers  when 
called  to  the  service  of  their  country,  but  to  be  good  soldiers  in 
war,  it  is  necessary  to  be  well  trained  in  peace.  I  am  sorry  to 
observe  that  the  militia  of  our  Territory  has  for  some  time  past 
been  in  a  declining  state." 

Governor  Williams,  on  assuming  office  in  1805,  found  the  mili- 
tia in  a  state  of  disorder,  but  efforts  for  reorganization  promised 
good  results.  He  said:  "We  have  several  volunteer  companies 
of  horse,  composed  of  the  most  wealthy  and  active  men  amongst 
us,  who  hold  themselves  in  readiness,  and  I  am  persuaded  would 
render  services  equal  to  any,  if  called  upon." 

There  were  many  changes  in  the  personnel  of  the  officers,  and 
the  -number  of  regiments  were  increased  to  agree  with  the  num- 
ber of  counties. 

The  first  militia  battalion  to  leave  Natchez  district  for  service 
was  that  which  was  called  to  New  Orleans  in  1790,  by  the  Spanish 
governor  to  guard  against  French  invasion  at  Balize.  Under  the 
United  States  government  the  first  battalion  called  out  was  that 
which  accompanied  Governor  Claiborne  to  New  Orleans  in  1803. 
(See  Claiborne's  administration.)  The  second,  under  the  com- 
mand of  Col.  Ferdinand  L.  Claiborne,  marched  to  Natchitoches  in 
1806,  expecting  to  participate  in  a  Sabine  river  campaign  against 
the  Spanish.  Within  the  Territory  there  was  special  service  on 
the  Baton  Rouge  frontier  in  1805  and  at  times  afterward,  mainly 
under  Capt.  Joshua  Baker,  and  in  the  severe  midwinter  of  Janu- 
ary, 1807,  on  account  of  the  Aaron  Burr  expedition,  (q.  v.)  Also 
see  Mississippi  Battalion,  1808,  and  Washington  county. 

The  life  of  the  service  was,  of  course,  the  cavalry,  in  which  there 
was  thorough  organization  and  enthusiastic  spirit.  Most  famous 
of  all  was  the  Adams  Troop,  of  Natchez.  Governor  Williams  in 
December,  1807,  proclaimed  the  uniform  for  the  field  officers  of  the 
regiment  of  horse  to  be,  "Blue  faced  with  scarlet;  gold  laced  but- 
ton holes;  yellow  buttons  and  epaulets;  white  under  clothes; 
sabers  slung  with  white  belts." 

Before  leaving  Virginia,  Governor  Holmes  (1809)  asked  the 
appointment  of  Col.  Ferdinand  L.  Claiborne  as  brigadier-general 
of  militia  for  the  Territory,  and  again  urged  this  after  his  arrival 
at  the  town  of  Washington.  The  legislature  in  December,  1809, 
joined  in  this  request.  But  it  seems  to  have  passed  unheeded,  as 
in  the  case  of  Col.  Osmun.  In  1811,  however,  in  prospect  of  war 
with  England,  Claiborne  was  appointed  brigadier-general.  Ben- 
jamin Farrar,  former  captain  of  the  Adams  troop,  was  commis- 


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MISSISSIPPI  243 

sioned  lieutenant-colonel  commanding  the  Territorial  cavalry,  in 
1811,  but  declined. 

The  appointments  to  lieutenant-colonel  commanding  after  1804 
were  William  H.  Wooldridge,  1805;  Ferd.  L.  Claiborne,  1806,  vice 
Osmun,  resigned;  Thomas  F.  Fitzpatrick,  1805,  vice  Zachariah 
Kirkland,  resigned;  Hugh  Davis  (Wilkinson)  1807;  James  Caller, 
1808  (Washington),  vice  John  Caller,  resigned;  William  R.  Rich- 
ards, 1809;  Nicholas  Perkins    (Madison)    1809. 

The  suspension  of  Col.  Claiborne  (Adams  county)  by  Governor 
Williams  in  1807  was  an  exciting  event.  Joseph  Sessions,  ap- 
pointed his  successor,  declined.  Israel  E.  Trask  accepted,  and  was 
succeeded  by  Philip  Hoggatt,  1809. 

Following  is  the  list  of  lieutenant-colonels  commissioned  in 
January,  1810: 

First  regiment,  William  R.  Richards,  succeeded  by  David  Nel- 
son, 1811 ;  Second,  Hugh  Davis ;  Third,  Philip  Hoggatt,  (declined, 
John  Wood);  Fourth,  Thomas  Fitzpatrick,  in  1812,  David  Car- 
radine;  Fifth,  William  H.  W^ooldridge;  Sixth,  James  Caller;  Sev- 
enth, Peter  Perkins ;  Eighth,  Joseph  Carson ;  Ninth,  James  Patton ; 
Tenth,  Benjamin  Hicks;  Eleventh,  John  J.  Jones,  succeeded  by 
Robert  Witherspoon.  In  December,  1811,  two  more  regiments 
(or  counties)  were  added,  commanded  by  Josiah  Skinner,  Twelfth, 
and  Timothy  Terrall,  Thirteenth. 

These  appointments  in  1810  were  under  a  new  law  at  the  begin- 
ning of  Holmes*  administration,  with  regiments  for  the  new  coun- 
ties of  Washington,  Baldwin  and  Madison  (Alabama),  and  those 
in  the  Choctaw  purchase,  making  eleven  regiments.  Governor 
Holmes,  in  November,  1810,  reported  that  he  had  been  successful 
in  the  reorganization,  but  urged  some  provision  for  what  has  since 
his  time  been  found  to  be  the  only  practical  basis  of  militia,  vol- 
unteer companies.  In  this  year,  1810,  some  of  the  militia  had 
active  service  on  account  of  the  Baton  Rouge  revolution.  Details 
by  volunteering  and  draft  were  made  in  1811  to  form  a  militia 
regiment  under  Col.  F.  L.  Claiborne,  which  was  sent  to  Baton 
Rouge,  where  it  was  the  nucleus  of  the  First  Mississippi  volun- 
teers, (q.  V.)  distinguished  in  the  Creek  war.  In  1813  there  were 
eighteen  militia  regiments,  nominally,  including  two  in  Madison 
county. 

Claiborne  resumed  the  rank  of  brigadier-general  after  his  retura 
from  the  Alabama  country  in  1814,  and  held  it  until  his  death,, 
when  Thomas  Hinds  was  appointed.  The  law  of  1814  provided  for 
a  brigade  organization  with  an  adjutant-general  at  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment, upon  an  annual  salary  of  $300.  (See  War  of  1812,  Creek . 
war,  Dragoons,  etc.) 

An  act  of  Congress  in  1816  required  the  appointment,  of  a  colonel 
as  well  as  lieutenant-colonel  and  major  for  each  regiment,  and  so 
the  militia  regiments  began  to  have  colonels  of  the  full  rank  at 
the  close  of  the  Territorial  period. 

Millard,  a  postoffice  of  Pearl  River  county,  on  the  New  Orleans 
&  North  Eastern  R.  R.,  8  miles  southeast  of  Poplarville,  the  county 


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244  MISSISSIPPI 

seat.    Lumbering  and  turpentine  plants  are  located  here.    It  has  a 
population  of  about  200. 

Millcreek,  a  postoffice  of  Winston  county,  located  on  Noxuba 
treek,  8  miles  east  of  Louisville,  the  county  seat. 

Miller,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  northeastern  part  of  De  Soto  county, 
on  the  Kansas  City,  Memphis  &  Birmingham  R.  R.,  14  miles  from 
Hernando,  the  county  seat,  and  nearest  banking,  telegraph  and  ex- 
press town.  Population  in  1900,  100;  the  population  in  1906  was 
estimated  at  150. 

Millican,  a  hamlet  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Prentiss  county, 
18  miles  from  Booneville,  the  county  seat.  It  has  rural  free  delivery 
from  New  Site. 

Millington,  John,  was  a  native  of  England.  He  was  raised  in 
London ;  was  the  pupil  of  Farraday,  and  an  associate  of  McAdam ; 
came  to  the  United  States  after  representing  an  English  Company 
in  the  mines  of  Mexico;  was  professor  of  chemistry  and  natural 
philosophy  in  William  and  Mary  College,  1835-47 ;  resigned  to 
accept  the  same  chair  in  the  University  of  Virginia  in  1848.  He 
was  profoundly  versed  in  the  science  of  mathematics.  He  was 
connected  with  the  University  of  Mississippi  during  the  first  nine 
years  of  its  existence,  and  then  resigned  to  accept  the  chair  of 
chemistry  and  texocology  at  the  Memphis  Medical  College.  At 
the  outbreak  of  the  war  he  went  to  Philadelphia,  and  after  peace 
ivas  declared  removed  to  Richmond,  Va.,  where  he  died  at  the 
age  of  eighty-nine  years. 

Mills,  a  hamlet  in  the  southern  part  of  Carroll  county.  It  has 
rural  free  delivery  from  Vaiden,  the  nearest  railroad  and  banking 
town,  on  the  Illinois  Central  R.  R. 

Millsaps  College.  After  the  removal  of  Centenary  College  in 
1845  from  Brandon  Springs,  Miss.,  to  Jackson,  La.,  the  need  was 
felt  among  the  Methodists  of  the  State  for  a  college  under  control 
of  the  Mississippi  Conferences  and  located  within  the  confines  of 
the  State.  Several  attempts  were  made  to  establish  higher  insti- 
tutions of  learning,  but  none  of  the  movements  were  successful 
till  in  December,  1888,  the  Mississippi  Conference  and  the  North 
Mississippi  Conference,  resolved  that  a  "college  for  the  education 
of  young  men  and  boys"  should  be  established  in  the  State.  Three 
preachers  and  three  laymen  were  appointed  from  each  conference 
to  take  immediate  steps  in  that  direction.  The  joint  committee 
met  in  Jackson  in  January,  1889,  and  Major  R.  W.  Millsaps  (q.  v.), 
a  member  of  the  commission,  offered  to  give  $50,000  for  endowing- 
the  proposed  college  if  the  Methodists  of  the  State  would  give  a 
like  amount.  This  proposition  was  enthusiastically  approved,  and 
Bishop  C.  B.  Galloway  was  invited  to  take  charge  of  a  campaign 
for  raising  the  proposed  sum.  In  December  of  the  same  year.  Dr. 
A.  F.  Watkins,  of  the  Mississippi  conference,  was  appointed  a 
special  agent  to  work  with  Bishop  Galloway,  and  in  1890  $25,000 
was  collected.  This  amount  was  supplemented  by  $25,000  from 
Major  Millsaps,  making  $50,000  for  the  endowment.  In  1893, 
$50,000  was  received  under  the  same  conditions,  and  the  endow- 


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MISSISSIPPI  245 

ment  stood  at  $100,000  until  quite  recently.  In  1890  the  Board  of 
Trustees,  under  the  presidency  of  Bishop  Galloway,  secured  a 
charter  from  the  legislature  of  Mississippi,  naming  the  college  for 
its  distinguished  benefactor.  The  Board  on  May  20,  1891,  decided 
to  locate  the  college  at  Jackson.  Flattering  offers  were  made  by 
many  towns,  but  the  people  of  Jackson  contributed  $21,000  for 
grounds  and  buildings,  and  Major  Millsaps  added  $15,000  to  this 
sum.  By  the  spring  of  1892,  the  main  building  was  nearly  com- 
pleted, and  the  Board  of  Trustees  organized  its  first  faculty.  Dr. 
W.  B.  Murrah  (q.  v.),  was  elected  president.  He  was  at  that  time 
vice-president  of  Whitworth  college.  Dr.  Murrah  has  held  this 
position  to  the  present  time,  having  refused  many  flattering  offers 
to  go  elsewhere.  No  other  member  of  the  original  faculty  is  now 
connected  with  the  institution,  though  Bishop  Galloway  is  still 
president  of  the  Board  of  Trustees.  In  addition  to  the  president, 
Mr.  N.  A.  Patilo  was  elected  professor  of  Mathematics.  Prof. 
Patilo  at  the  time  of  his  election  was  doing  graduate  work  in  the 
Johns  Hopkins  university.  At  the  same  meeting  of  the  Trustees 
Professor  W.  L.  Weber,  acting-professor  of  English  in  the  South- 
western university,  Georgetown,  Texas,  was  elected  to  the  chair 
of  English.  At  a  later  meeting  of  the  Trustees  in  the  summer  of 
1892,  Mr.  G.  C.  Swearengen,  a  post-graduate  student  of  Vander- 
bilt  university,  and  a  Ph.  D.  of  Chicago  university  in  1902,  was 
elected  Professor  of  Latin  and  Greek,  and  Rev.  M.  M.  Black,  also 
a  graduate  of  Vanderbilt,  was  chosen  as  principal  of  the  Prepara- 
tory Department.  With  this  faculty  the  first  session  opened  Sep- 
tember 29,  1892.  There  were  150  students  enrolled  the  first  year, 
and  the  attendance  has  increased  to  300  at  present.  The  first 
session  was  one  of  marked  success.  At  the  commencement  in 
June,  1893,  the  department  of  the  Natural  Sciences  was  created, 
and  Prof.  A.  M.  Muckenfuss  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  scientific 
work.  Prof.  Muckenfuss  was  a  graduate  student  of  the  Johns 
Hopkins  university,  and  received  his  Ph.  D.  degree  in  1895  from 
the  Hopkins.  In  1894  Professor  Patilo  resigned  the  chair  of 
Mathematics  and  in  his  place  was  elected  Dr.  J.  A.  Moore,  profes- 
sor of  Mathematics  in  Southern  University,  Greensboro,  Alabama. 
Dr.  Moore  has  occupied  this  position  till  the  present  time,  is  sec- 
retary of  the  Faculty,  and,  as  the  present  senior  member  of  the 
Faculty,  ex-officio  vice-president  of  the  college.  At  the  same  time 
Prof.  Black  resigned  his  position  in  the  Preparatory  Department, 
and  Prof.  R.  S.  Ricketts  was  selected  in  his  place.  Prof.  Ricketts 
had  been  for  over  20  years  a  professor  in  Whitworth  Female  col- 
lege, and  has  assisted  in  educating  the  mothers  of  many  of  his 
present  pupils.  As  assistant  in  the  Preparatory  Department  Prof. 
E.  L.  Bailey  was  elected.  He  was  at  the  time  principal  of  the 
High  School  in  Jackson.  At  the  commencement  in  1896  a  Law 
Department  was  added  to  the  College,  and  Dr.  Edward  Mayes 
was  elected  Dean.  Dr.  Mayes  had  been  professor  of  Law  at  the 
University  of  Mississippi,  and  Chancellor  of  the  University  for 
three  years.    At  the  same  commencement  the  department  of  His- 


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246  MISSISSIPPI 

tory  and  Modern  Languages  was  created,  and  Prof.  J.  P.  Hanner 
was  put  in  charge  of  the  work.  Prof.  Hanner  had  been  acting- 
professor  of  Natural  Sciences  in  1894-95,  in  place  of  Prof.  Mucken- 
fuss  absent  on  leave,  and  in  1895-96,  was  acting-professor  of 
Ancient  Languages  while  Prof.  Swearengen  was  in  Europe  on 
leave.  He  was  a  graduate  of  Vanderbilt  University.  The  faculty 
remained  unchanged  until  the  fall  of  1899  when  Prof.  Weber  re- 
signed from  the  chair  of  English  to  accept  the  same  chair  in 
Emory  College.  In  his  place  was  elected  Professor  D.  H.  Bishop, 
professor  of  English  and  History  in  Polytechnic  College,  Fort 
Worth,  Texas.  At  the  close  of  the  session  of  1899-1900,  Prof. 
Hanner  resigned  from  the  Chair  of  History  and  Modern  Lan- 
guages, and  accepted  a  position  in  Emory  College.  Prof.  B.  E. 
Young  resigned  the  chair  of  Modern  Languages  in  the  Polytechnic 
College,  Fort  Worth,  Texas,  and  accepted  the  position  made  va- 
cant by  Prof.  Hanner's  resignation.  Prof.  Bailey  also  resigned 
from  the  Preparatory  Department,  and  Rev.  G.  W.  Huddleston, 
principal  of  Carthage  High  School,  took  his  place.  Prof.  Huddles- 
ton  is  still  in  this  position.  At  the  same  time  there  were  added 
to  the  Law  Department,  Judge  A.  H.  Whitfield,  Chief-Justice  of 
the  Supreme  Court,  and  Judge  W.  R.  Harper.  These  with  Judge 
Mayes  constitute  the  present  Law  Faculty.  At  the  commence- 
ment of  June,  1902,  Dr.  Muckenfuss  accepted  the  chair  of  Chem- 
istry in  the  University  of  Arkansas,  and  in  1905  the  same  chair 
in  the  University  of  Mississippi.  In  his  place  was  elected  Dr.  J. 
M.  Sullivan,  a  Ph.  D.  of  Vanderbilt,  and  professor  of  Natural  Sci- 
ences in  Centenary  College.  During  the  session  of  1902-03,  Prof. 
A.  H.  Shannon  acted  as  professor  of  Biology  and  Sociology.  In 
1904  Prof.  Young  accepted  the  chair  of  Romance  Languages  in 
Vanderbilt  University,  and  the  chair  of  History  and  Modern  Lan- 
guages was  divided.  Prof.  J.  E.  Walmsley  took  charge  of  the  work 
in  History  and  Economics.  Prof.  Walmsley  had  been  professor 
of  History  and  Economics  in  Kentucky  Wesleyan  College,  and, 
during  the  session  of  1903-04,  was  acting-professor  of  History  and 
Modern  Languages  in  the  absence  of  Prof.  Young,  who  was  in 
Europe.  Prof.  O.  H.  Moore,  a  graduate  of  Harvard,  was  elected 
to  the  new  chair  of  Modern  Languages.  Dr.  Swearengen  resigned 
from  the  Latin  and  Greek  Department,  and  the  position  was  filled 
by  Prof.  M.  W.  Swartz,  who  had  been  professor  of  Greek  and 
German  in  the  Milwaukee  Academy.  Prof.  Bishop  accepted  the 
chair  of  English  in  the  University  of  Mississippi,  and  Prof.  A.  A. 
Kern  was  selected  in  his  place.  At  the  time  of  his  election  Prof. 
Kern  was  a  graduate  student  of  the  Johns  Hopkins  University. 
During  the  session  of  1905-06  a  movement  was  organized  to  in- 
crease the  endowment,  and  the  movement  has  so  far  succeeded 
that  the  productive  endowment  is  now  near  $200,000.  Since  the 
erection  of  the  original  main  building,  there  have  been  added,  an 
astronomical  observatory,  the  gift  of  Dan  A.  James,  the  Webster 
Science  Hall,  and  the  Founder's  Hall,  these  last  being  the  gifts 
of  Major  Millsaps.     In  addition  to  the  large  dormitory,  known  as 


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MISSISSIPPI  247 

Founder's  Hall,  there  are  ten  smaller  students'  homes,  and  two 
fraternity  halls.  The  college  is  situated  in  a  most  attractive  part 
of  Jackson,  and  its  campus  will  soon  be  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
in  the  South.  The  College  offers  three  courses  leading  to  degrees, 
and  its  graduates  have  taken  such  high  rank  in  the  outer  world 
that,  though  the  youngest  college  in  the  State,  it  ranks  second  to 
none. 

Millsaps,  Reuben  Webster,  was  born  in  Copiah  County,  Miss., 
May  30,  1833.  He  is  a  son  of  Reuben  Millsaps  and  Lavinia 
Clowers,  who  were  both  Georgians  by  birth.  Major  Millsaps  was 
educated  at  Hanover  college  and  Asbury  (now  De  Pauw)  univer- 
sity, graduating  in  1854.  After  returning  to  Mississippi  he  taught 
school  for  a  few  years  and  then  entered  the  law  department  of 
Harvard  university,  from  which  he  was  graduated  in  1858.  He 
began  the  practice  of  law  in  Pine  Bluff,  Ark.,  where  he  resided 
till  the  beginning  of  the  war,  when  he  joined  Co.  A,  9th  Arkansas 
infantry.  He  was  wounded  once,  and  held  the  rank  of  major  at 
the  close  of  the  war.  He  engaged  in  mercantile  business  in  Mis- 
sissippi till  1880,  when  he  removed  to  St.  Louis,  and  remained 
there  for  four  years.  In  1884  he  closed  out  his  business  in  St. 
Louis,  and,  after  spending  a  year  in  Europe,  returned  to  Missis- 
sippi, and  engaged  in  banking,  first  in  Hazelhurst,  and  later  in 
Jackson,  where  he  now  resides.  He  was  president  of  the  Capitol 
National  bank,  in  Jackson,  from  1888  to  1904,  and  is  a  stockholder 
and  director  in  many  of  the  banks  of  the  State.  He  has  given 
nearly  $200,000  to  Millsaps  college  (q.  v.),  and  is  interested  in 
many  philanthropic  movements,  in  addition  to  the  official  posi- 
tions which  he  holds  in  the  Methodist  church.  In  1869  he  was 
married  to  Mrs.  Mary  F.  Younkin,  a  daughter  of  Horace  Bean, 
a  banker  of  New  Orleans. 

Millview,  a  postoffice  of  Harrison  county,  on  the  Gulf  &  Ship 
Island  R.  R.,  23  miles  by  rail  north  of  Gulfport,  and  1  mile  south  of 
McHenry  Station,  the  nearest  banking  town. 

MiUville,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  eastern  part  of  Madison  county, 
18  miles  from  Canton,  the  county  seat  and  nearest  railroad  and 
banking  town.    Population  in  1900,  63. 

Minden,  a  post-hamlet  in  the  extreme  southeastern  part  of 
Kemper  county,  on  Wild  Horse  creek,  about  18  miles  from  Dekalb, 
the  county  seat.  It  is  4  miles  east  of  the  main  line  of  the  Mobile 
&  Ohio  R.  R.    Population  in  1900,  30. 

Minerva,  a  postoffice  of  Montgomery  county,  8  miles  northeast 
of  Winona,  the  county  seat.  The  town  is  growing  and  has  a 
population  of  50. 

Mingo,  a  postoffice  of  Tishomingo  county,  12  miles  south  of  luka, 
the  county  seat  and  nearest  railroad  and  banking  town. 

Minieola,  a  post-hamlet  of  Kemper  county,  on  Sucarnoochee 
creek,  6  miles  north  of  Dekalb,  the  county  seat. 

Mining.  See  Clays,  Cement,  Fertilizers,  Iron  and  Coal,  Ochre. 

Minor,  Stephen,  entitled  in  the  Spanish  documents,  Don  Estevan 
Minor,  "was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania ;  he  first  visited  New  Orleans 


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248  MISSISSIPPI 

in  1780,  to  procure  military  stores  for  the  American  posts  on  the 
Ohio  and  IMonongahela  [the  same  errand  on  which  Capt.  James 
Willing  came].  On  his  return,  with  a  caravan  of  loaded  mules, 
not  far  from  the  present  post  of  Arkansas,  his  stores  were  plun- 
dered and  his  men  all  murdered;  his  own  escape  being  due  to  a 
most  fortuitous  detention  by  sickness,  a  few  hours  behind  his 
party.  He  afterwards  repaired  to  New  Orleans,"  where  the 
American  party  was  headed  by  Oliver  Pollock  and  Daniel  Clark, 
and  joined  in  the  expedition  of  Gen.  Galvez  against  Mobile,  Gal- 
vez'  war  being  understood  to  be  in  sympathy  with  the  American 
revolution.  '*His  remarkable  skill  with  the  rifle,  and  his  acts  of 
gallantry,  during  the  siege,  attracted  the  notice  and  secured  the 
favor  of  the  general,  by  whom  his  position  in  the  Spanish  army 
was  advanced."  (Wailes,  Historical  Outline.)  Minor  was  sent 
to  Natchez  in  1783,  where  he  had  the  rank  of  captain  in  the  Span- 
ish army,  and  the  position  of  aide-major  or  adjutant  of  the  mili- 
tary post.  On  the  records  his  function  appears,  "ayudante  del 
Fuerte  Panmure  de  Natchez."  Throughout  the  whole  Spanish 
jurisdiction  he  was  the  subordinate  officer  to  the  governor,  being 
in  fact  the  American  element  in  the  government,  and  no  doubt 
responsible  for  its  adaptation  to  the  customs  and  habits  of  the 
population.  Pie  was,  of  course,  intimately  associated  with  Miro 
and  Gayoso,  both  of  whom  were  promoted  from  the  government 
of  Natchez  to  the  administration  of  Louisiana  and  West  Florida. 

William  Dunbar  wrote:  "This  gentleman  was  aide-major  of 
the  post  of  Natchez,  and  attended  the  governor  [Gayoso]  officially, 
almost  perpetually,  and  was  certainly  more  intimately  acquainted 
with  his  motives  and  actions  than  any  one  here,  his  secretary  only 
excepted,  who  is  a  Spaniard  [Joseph  Vidal]."  "He  is  said  to  have 
endeared  himself  to  his  countrymen,  the  American  settlers,  by  his 
acts  of  friendliness  and  protection,  and  was  applied  to  on  all  occa- 
sions, in  cases  of  difficulty."     (Wailes.) 

His  attachment  to  Natchez  district  was  increased  by  his  mar- 
riage to  a  daughter  of  John  Ellis,  of  White  Cliffs.  When  Gayoso 
became  governor  of  Louisiana,  after  the  arrival  of  Ellicott,  Capt. 
Minor  acted  as  commandant  at  Natchez,  and  civil  governor  until 
the  evacuation  in  the  spring  of  1798.  Capt.  Guion  wrote  to  Gen. 
Wilkinson,  May  5,  1798:  "Captains  Minor  and  Vidal  are  still 
here.  The  first  is  an  American  (at  heart).  The  latter  says  he  is 
a  consul.  I  say  he  is — perhaps  so."  Minor  served  on  the  boun- 
flary  commission,  for  running  the  line  between  the  United  States 
and  the  Floridas,  in  1798-99,  in  place  of  Gov.  Gayoso,  and  was 
with  the  surveying  party  to  the  Chattahoochee  river. 

In  1804-5  he  was  listed  as  an  officer  of  the  Spanish  boundary 
commission  of  Louisiana,  as  a  captain  in  the  Spanish  army.  He 
gave  a  safe  conduct  to  Walter  Burling,  sent  by  Wilkinson  to  the 
governor  of  Mexico  in  1806.  Captain  Minor  then  had  his  home 
at  Gayoso's  old  plantation.  Concord,  and,  says  Claiborne's  history, 
"was  an  opulent  planter,  extremely  hospitable,  and  lived  in  elegant 
style."     But  he  did  not  purchase  that  plantation  until  sometime 


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MISSISSIPPI  249 

after  the  evacuation.  "A  part  of  the  Minor  family  still  resides 
near  Natchez  at  a  charming  home  called  Oakland,  which  is  a  part 
of  the  original  grant  made  to  Don  Estevan  Minor.  Oakland  is 
famous  for  its  avenue  of  liveoak  trees,  of  which  the  branches  inter- 
lock though  the  trunks  stand  eighty  feet  apart."  (Deupree.)  Gov- 
ernor Minor  had  a  brother,  John  Minor,  who  was  at  Natchez  dur- 
ing the  absence  of  Stephen  Minor  on  the  survey.  William  J, 
Minor,  son  of  the  captain,  resided  at  Concord,  after  the  decease  of 
his  father.  Minor's  second  marriage  was  to  Catherine  Lintot,  and 
five  children  were  born  to  them.  Captain  Minor  died  at  Concord 
in  1815. 

Minot,  a  postoffice  in  the  northern  part  of  Sunflower  county,  on 
the  Yazoo  &  Mississippi  Valley  R.  R.,  about  35  miles  distant  from 
Indianola,  the  county  seat. 

Minter  City,  a  post-village  in  the  northern  part  of  Leflore  county, 
on  the  Southern,  and  the  Mississippi  Valley  railroads,  about  18  miles 
northwest  of  Greenwood,  the  county  seat.  It  has  a  money  order 
postoffice,  an  oil  mill,  and  a  brick  and  tile  factory.  Population 
in  1900,  irO. 

Miro,  Estevan,  was  a  Spanish  officer  at  New  Orleans,  who 
gained  promotion  to  colonel  commanding  the  Creole  regiment, 
during  the  conquest  of  West  Florida  by  Galvez,  and  succeeding 
Galvez  as  governor  of  the  province,  including  the  Natchez  district. 
He  made  the  treaty  of  1784,  at  Pensacola  and  Mobile,  with  Alex- 
ander McGillivray  and  the  Southern  Indian  nations,  binding  them 
to  Spain ;  and  engaged  the  services  of  James  Wilkinson  and  others 
to  promote  the  separation  of  the  Western  country  from  the  United 
States.  He  was  popular  outside  of  his  own  domain,  as  was  evi- 
denced by  the  naming  of  the  Cumberland  river  region  "Miro  dis- 
trict," in  his  honor.  In  October,  1790,  he  wrote  to  his  home 
government,  asking  a  place  in  the  department  of  the  Indies,  in 
Spain.  "I  have  now  had  the  honor,"  said  he,  "of  serving  the  king,, 
always  with  distinguished  zeal,  for  thirty  years  and  three  months, 
of  which,  twenty-one  years  and  eight  months  in  America."  He 
was  a  native  of  Catalonia;  his  wife  was  a  Macarty,  of  New  Or- 
leans. Judge  Martin  wrote  of  him  that  though  he  was  not  bril- 
liant, like  Galvez,  he  had  sound  judgment,  a  high  sense  of  honor 
and  an  excellent  heart,  united  suavity  of  temper  with  energy,  was 
remarkable  for  strict  morality,  had  a  fair  college  education  and 
was  master  of  several  languages.  He  sailed  for  Spain  in  1791, 
"where  he  continued  his  military  career,  and  from  the  rank  of 
brigadier-general  rose  to  that  of  mariscal  de  campo,  of  lieutenant- 
general." 

Mish,  a  money  order  post-hamlet  of  Covington  county,  and  a 
station  on  the  Gulf  &  Ship  Island  R.  R.,  6  miles  north  of  Williams- 
burg, the  county  seat,  and  3  miles  southeast  of  Mt.  Olive,  the 
nearest  banking  town.  Population  in  1900,  21.  A  large  saw  mill 
is  located  here  and  the  population  in  1906  was  estimated  at  100. 


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250  MISSISSIPPI 

Missionary,  a  hamlet  of  Jasper  county,  6  miles  north  of  Paulding, 
the  county  seat.  The  postoffice  here  has  been  discontinued  and  mail 
now  goes  to  Paulding.    Population  in  1900,  57. 

Missions,  Early  Catholic.  With  the  exception  of  the  chaplains 
who  are  known  to  have  accompanied  De  Soto  in  his  luckless  wan- 
derings through  Mississippi  in  1539,  Father  Marquette  was  the 
first  Catholic  priest  to  set  foot  on  Mississippi  soil.  In  1673,  with 
Joliet,  he  explored  the  great  river,  termed  on  his  autograph  map 
the  River  de  la  Conception,  as  far  south  as  the  mouth  of  the  Ar- 
kansas river.  His  work  was  one  of  exploration  and  preparation, 
and  he  probably  held  little  communication  with  the  Indians.  Nine 
years  later,  Father  Zenobius  Membre,  Recollect,  accompanied  the 
expedition  of  LaSalle  as  chaplain,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi. 
He  has  left  us  an  interesting  narrative  of  that  celebrated  voyage. 
On  their  way  down  the  river,  every  effort  was  made  to  obtain  tiie 
friendship  of  the  various  Indian  tribes.  Father  Membre  calls  the 
Natchez  by  the  name  "Natchie";  says  the  narrative,  "Although 
their  village  lay  three  leagues  inland,  the  sieur  de  la  Salle  did  not 
hesitate  to  go  there  with  part  of  our  force.  We  slept  there  and 
received  as  kindly  a  welcome  as  we  could  expect." 

Before  1698  the  seminary  of  foreign  missions  at  Paris,  France, 
had  established  a  branch  in  Quebec  to  train  missionaries  for  the 
New  World.  The  first  Catholic  missionaries  sent  in  1698  by  the 
Bishop  of  Quebec  into  the  newly  discovered  southern  field  were 
priests  from  this  seminary.  They  were  Father  Francis  Jolliet  de 
Montigny,  superior;  who  settled  among  the  Taensas,  a  nation 
closely  akin  to  the  Natchez;  and  afterwards  among  the  Natchez; 
Father  Anthony  Davion,  who  pursued  his  missionary  labors  in 
what  is  now  Wilkinson  county,  and  who  planted  the  cross  on  a 
high  rock,  known  by  the  French  as  Roche  a  Davion  until  1764, 
when  it  was  called  Loftus  Heights,  and  subsequently  and  ever 
since  as  Fort  Adams ;  the  third  priest  sent  at  this  time  was  Father 
Francis  Buisson  de  Saint  Cosme,  who  began  a  mission  among  the 
Tamarois,  an  Illinois  tribe  above  the  Ohio;  he  later  took  the  place 
of  Father  Montigny  among  the  Natchez.  When  d'Iberville  came 
in  1699  to  plant  the  first  French  colony  on  the  Mississippi,  he 
brought  with  him  as  chaplains  Father  Bordenac,  who  was  later 
left  as  chaplain  of  the  garrison  at  Fort  Biloxi,  and  Father  Anas- 
tasius  Douay,  Recollect,  who  had  been  with  LaSalle's  expedition, 
from  1684-88,  and  has  left  a  very  full  narrative  of  LaSalle's  attempt 
to  ascend  the  Mississippi,  in  1787.  Father  Anastasius  does  not 
appear  to  have  remained  long  in  the  colony,  however.  In  1699, 
Revs.  Berzier  Bouteville  and  Saint  Cosme,  a  younger  brother  of 
the  Father  Cosme,  above  mentioned,  arrived  on  the  Lower  Mis- 
sissippi from  Canada.  In  July,  1699.  Fathers  Montieny  and  Davion, 
having  learned  from  the  Indians  that  the  French  had  made  a  set- 
tlement at  Biloxi,  were  welcome  visitors  at  that  post.  October  1, 
1702,  Father  Davion  and  Father  Limoee,  a  Jesuit  priest,  went  to 
Biloxi  to  inform  the  French  that  Father  Foucault,  his  servant, 
and  two  other  Frenchmen  had  been  murdered  on  the  Yazoo  river 


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MISSISSIPPI  251 

by  two  Courois  Indians,  who  were  serving  them  as  guides  on  a 
trip  to  Mobile.  It  would  seem  that  Father  Davion  abandoned  his 
mission  among  the  Tonicas  for  a  time,  as  La  Harpe  records  that 
December  21,  1704,  "the  chiefs  of  the  Tonica  nation  came  to  Fort 
Mobile  to  solicit  the  return  of  Father  Davion  to  their  village, 
which  he  had  abandoned  since  the  death  of  Father  Foucault,  who 
had  been  killed  by  the  Curois,  instigated  by  the  English,  and  in 
concert  with  the  Yasous."  In  1706,  Father  Saint  Cosme,  the 
elder,  became  sick  and  started  down  the  Mississippi  from  Natchez. 
January  1,  1707,  Rev.  Father  Berzier,  Grand  Vicar  of  Quebec, 
arrived  at  Mobile  from  his  station  among  the  Tamarois,  and  re- 
ported that  Father  Saint  Cosme  had  been  cruelly  murdered  by  the 
Chitamaches  of  La  Fourche.  Bienville  thereupon  induced  the 
Biloxis,  Bayagoulas  and  Natchez  to  make  war  on  them  and  they 
were  nearly  exterminated.  Father  Davion  was  finally  forced  to 
abandon  his  mission  among  the  Tonicas  on  account  of  the  hostility 
of  the  Indians,  who  were  instigated  thereto  by  the  English,  and 
went  to  Mobile.  Meanwhile,  the  Bishop  of  Quebec  had  caused 
Father  la  Vente  and  four  other  priests  to  be  sent  to  the  colony  from 
France.  La  Vente  came  as  Vicar-General  of  the  colony,  and  con- 
temporary records  would  seem  to  indicate  that  he  devoted  more 
time  to  stirring  up  trouble  against  Gov.  Bienville  than  to  mission- 
ary efforts. 

When  the  Company  of  the  West  was  formed  in  1717  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  the  charter  required  the  company 
"to  build  at  its  expense  churches  at  the  places  where  settlements 
were  formed ;  to  maintain  there  the  necessary  number  of  approved 
ecclesiastics,  in  order  to  preach  the  holy  Gospel  there,  perform 
divine  service  and  administer  the  sacraments  under  the  authority 
of  the  bishop  of  Quebec,  the  said  colony  remaining  as  heretofore 
in  his  diocese."  "In  1722,"  says  the  Rev.  B.  J.  Bekkers  in  his 
sketch  of  the  Catholic  Church  in  Mississippi,  "the  company  took 
up  the  matter.  The  year  before,  the  Jesuit  Father  Charlevoix 
(q.  V.)  had  travelled  through  the  French  colonies  in  North  Amer- 
ica (he  made  extended  visits  at  the  Yazoo  and  at  Natchez),  and 
after  his  return  to  France  had  told  of  the  great  spiritual  destitu- 
tion of  the  colony."  As  a  result  of  this  report,  it  was  arranged  to 
have  the  Capuchin  fathers  take  charge  of  the  French  settlements, 
and  Jesuit  fathers  from  France  were  placed  in  charge  of  the  mis- 
sions among  the  Indians.  In  that  portion  of  the  province  of 
Louisiana  embraced  in  the  State  of  Mississippi,  the  following  as- 
signments were  made :  The  Caouchin  Father  Philibert  was  given 
the  mission  at  Natchez.  The  Jesuit  Father  Maturin  le  Petit  was 
sent  to  the  Choctaws;  Father  Seoul  to  the  Yazoos;  Father  Bau- 
douin  to  the  Chickasaws.  On  the  recall  of  Father  le  Petit  to  New 
Orleans,  Father  Baudouin  took  his  place,  and  assisted  by  Father 
Lefevre  labored  amone^  the  Choctaws  for  18  years.  We  are 
indebted  to  Father  le  Petit  for  a  very  full  account  of  the  man- 
ners and  customs  of  the  Natchez  tribe,  including  an  account  of  the 
great  massacre  of  1729.     Father  Philibert  happened  to  be  away 


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252  MISSISSIPPI 

from  Natchez  and  escaped  the  common  fate;  the  Jesuit  father  du 
Poisson,  from  the  Arkansas  post,  however,  happened  to  be  at  Nat- 
chez at  the  time  and  was  slain,  as  was  Father  Seoul  at  the  Yazoo 
on  December  11.  Father  Doutrelou  was  severely  wounded  by  the 
Yazoos  at  this  time  also,  but  managed  to  escape.  Still  another 
Jesuit  met  his  fate  on  Mississippi  soil  in  1736.  Father  Lenat  had 
accompanied  d'Artaguette  from  the  Illinois  post  on  his  disastrous 
expedition  into  the  Chickasaw  country  to  assist  Bienville.  He 
perished  with  the  commander  and  other  officers  at  the  stake. 

The  Jesuit  order  was  finally  suppressed  in  France  in  1761  and 
all  the  missionaries  in  the  province  of  Louisiana  were  hunted 
down  and  deported  to  France,  their  property  confiscated  and  their 
churches  and  chapels  destroyed. 

As  a  result  of  the  seven  years  war  between  England  and  France 
the  latter  country  lost  her  possessions  in  the  new  world,  and,  with 
the  exception  of  the  brief  period  1779-98,  when  the  Spaniards  were 
in  control  of  the  province  of  West  Florida,  Catholic  missionary 
effort  entirely  ceased.  Under  the  Spanish  regime,  the  Bishop  of 
Salamanca  sent  four  Irish  prie.sts  to  Natchez,  about  1790,  the 
Revs.  Wm.  Savage,  Gregory  White,  Constantine  McKenna  and 
Michael  Lamport.  When  the  province  became  part  of  the  United 
States  by  the  treaty  of  San  Lorenzo,  they  all  returned  to  Spain 
and  the  territory  of  Mississippi  was  without  a  Catholic  priest. 

Catholic  missionary  labors  thus  cover  nearly  a  century  of  time. 
Despite  great  individual  effort  and  heroism  amid  savage  condi- 
tions of  life,  it  is  doubtful  if  many  converts  to  Christianity  were 
made  in  Mississippi,  or  if  any  lasting  impression  was  made  on 
the  Indian  tribes.  (See  Shea,  History  of  Cath.  Church,  and  Bek- 
kers.  Miss.  Hist.  Soc.  Publ.,  VI,  351.) 

Missions,  Protestant.  Before  the  departure  of  the  Catholic 
priests  the  Protestants  had  done  much  missionary  work,  but  in 
violation  of  the  laws  of  the  province.  The  first  Protestant  to 
preach  in  the  new  territory  was  Rev.  Richard  Curtis,  a  Baptist, 
who  settled  on  Cole's  Creek  near  Natchez,  with  a  number  of  emi- 
grants from  North  Carolina  in  1780.  His  work  was  effective,  and 
the  first  Protestant  church  in  Mississippi  was  established  by  him. 
But  his  preaching  aroused  the  indignation  of  the  Spanish  govern- 
ment, and  to  escape  being  sent  to  the  mines  in  Mexico,  he  fled 
through  the  wilderness  to  his  old  home  and  did  not  return  until 
the  United  States  got  possession  of  the  territory.  The  Baptists 
were  active  in  the  early  missionary  work.  Soon  after  Mr.  Curtis 
began  his  work  Rev.  Tobias  Gibson,  a  Methodist  missionary,  came 
to  the  territory,  followed  by  Moses  Floyd,  Lanner  Blackman  and 
T.  C.  N.  Barnes,  also  Methodists,  who  did  effective  work.  The 
pioneer  preacher  of  the  Episcopalians  was  Rev.  Adam  Cloud,  who 
came  in  1792.  He  did  missionary  work  until  1795,  when  he  was 
sent  to  New  Orleans  in  irons,  and  to  e^^cape  the  punishment  of 
slavery  in  the  mines  went  into  exile  in  Georgia  and  South  Caro- 
lina. The  Presbyterians  came  as  soon  as  the  Americans  gained 
possession  of  the  country.     They  established  missions  among  the 


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MISSISSIPPI  253 

Indians  and  did  active  missionary  work  among  the  negroes  on  the 
plantations. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century  a  Congregational- 
ist  preacher  named  Bullen  came  from  New  York  and  attempted 
to  establish  a  mission  near  the  present  site  of  Pontotoc.  He  put 
up  some  buildings,-but  his  enterprise  was  a  failure,  as  a  result  of 
the  imprudence  of  his  two  deacons. 

In  1818  Revs.  Kingsbury,  Gleason,  Touse,  Hooper  Cushman  and 
others  established  a  mission  called  Mayhew  in  East  Mississippi, 
but  afterwards  removed  to  a  place  they  called  Hebron,  three  miles 
from  the  present  site  of  Starkville.  In  August,  1818,  the  Elliott 
school  was  established  on  the  Yalobusha  in  the  Choctaw  nation,  by 
the  American  Board  for  foreign  missions.  At  these  missions  the 
boys  were  taught  farming,  and  the  girls  how  to  spin,  weave,  knit 
and  keep  house.  Eighty  scholars  were  reported  in  1822,  when  the 
board  was  about  to  open  school  at  Mayhew.  . 

Mayhew  mission  school  (near  Columbus)  was  established  by 
Dr.  David  Wright,  who  taught  and  preached  to  the  Indians  for 
several  years.  His  daughter,  Laura,  born  at  Mayhew  in  1824,  was 
educated  at  Mt.  Holyoke,  Mass.,  and  taught  school  in  Mississippi 
for  40  years. 

The  Cumberland  Presbyterian  church  in  Tennessee  established 
a  school  in  the  Chickasaw  nation  in  October,  1820,  which  was  in 
charge  of  Rev.  Robert  Bell,  previously  a  resident  of  Monroe 
county,  Miss.  He  taught  a  school  two  and  a  half  miles  northeast 
of  Cotton  Gin  Port,  and  in  1834  settled  near  Pontotoc.  In  October, 
1821,  the  missionary  society  of  the  Presbyterian  synod  of  South 
Carolina  and  Georgia,  established  a  mission  among  the  Chickasaws 
at  Monroe  Station,  the  movement  to  this  end  having  been  begun 
in  1819,  the  region  having  been  visited  by  Revs.  David  Humphries 
and  T.  C.  Stuart  in  1820.  Stuart  established  the  mission,  aided 
by  two  men  as  farmer  and  mechanic.  William  Colbert,  grandson 
of  the  original  settler,  became  an  elder  in  the  church  they  organ- 
ized. A  branch  mission  was  established  at  "Pigeon  Roost,"  the 
station  being  called  Martyn,  under  Rev.  W.  C.  Blair,  of  Ohio. 

The  Six  Towns  Mission  Station  was  established  by  a  gentleman 
by  the  name  of  Bardwell  in  1825.  He  was  probably  from  New 
England,  and  the  Indians  among  whom  his  mission  was  located 
were  known  as  the  Six  Towns  tribe.  A  comfortable  log  dwelling 
was  built,  also  a  log  church  and  school  house.  The  location  of 
this  mission  was  in  Jasper  county.  The  missionaries  supplied  the 
natives  with  school  and  church  privileges  and  worked  among 
them  eight  years,  but  their  work,  though  done  in  a  spirit  of  self 
sacrifice,  did  not  amount  to  a  g^reat  deal. 

The  later  missionary  work,  aside  from  church  extension  work 
among  the  whites,  has  been  among  the  negro  population. 

Mississippi.  Originally  the  name  of  the  river.  Peter  Pitchlynn, 
in  a  letter  to  the  Columbus  Whigf,  in  1861,  traced  the  derivation 
of  the  word  to  the  Choctaw,  mish  sha  sippukni,  which  he  trans- 
lated "beyond  age."    Du  Pratz  sought  to  explain  the  name  Mecha- 


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254:  MISSISSIPPI 

sepi  as  a  contraction  of  Meact  Chassipi,  meaning  "the  ancient 
father  of  waters."  It  appears,  however,  that  the  Southern  Indians 
did  not  give  the  river  such  a  name  when  the  earliest  explorers 
reached  the  coast.  The  name  given  by  the  gulf  coast  Indians  was 
written  by  the  French  as  Malabouchia. 

Meechee  Seepee,  or  something  sounding  like  that,  was  the  name 
given  the  river  by  the  Indians  of  the  Northwest,  visited  by  La- 
Salle  and  Marquette.  The  meeche  or  "Missi",  is  the  same  in 
meaning  as  the  Micco  of  the  Creeks  and  other  Muscogees,  mean- 
ing great  as  an  adjective,  and  chief  as  a  noun.  The  Michi  of 
Michigan  is  the  same  word,  and  possibly  the  Massa  of  Massachu- 
setts has  a  like  derivation.  Mississippi  means  great  water,  or  great 
river.  It  would  be  more  accurately  spelled  Missisippi,  the  French 
orthography,  or  Misisipi,  the  Spanish  form,  both  pronounced  Mee- 
seeseepee,  which  is  probably  close  in  sound  to  the  Indian  spoken 
words. 

The  river  was  known  to  the  Spaniards  in  the  16th  and  17th  cen- 
turies chiefly  under  the  name  of  the  Rio  del  Espiritu  Santo,  (q.  v.) 
or  the  River  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  It  was.  also  called  by  them  the 
Rio  Grande  del  Florida,  the  Rio  Grande  del  Espiritu  Santo,  or 
simply  the  Rio  Grande. 

By  the  French  it  was  given  the  title  of  La  Palisade,  on  account 
of  the  numerous  upright  snags  and  young  cotton-wood  trees 
found  on  the  bar  and  passes  at  the  mouth.  After  its  exploration 
by  Marquette  and  LaSalle,  it  was  called  the  Colbert  in  honor  of 
the  great  minister  of  Louis  XIV.  Subsequent  to  the  founding  of 
the  French  colony  by  Iberville  in  1699,  it  was  named  the  St.  Louis, 
for  the  King.  But  these  names  all  yielded  in  time  to  the  ancient 
Indian  name. 

Says  F.  L.  Riley  (Hist,  of  Miss.,  p.  349),  Fere  Marquette  was 
the  first  to  introduce  the  name,  as  Mitchisipi  (pronounced  Mee- 
cheeSeepee),  into  geography  (1672).  Charlevoix,  in  his  publica- 
tion of  1744,  gave  the  name  as  Misisipi  or  Micissippi.  Hennepin 
(1698)  spelled  Mechasipi  or  Mechacebe.  Daniel  Coxe  gave  it 
Merchacebe.  The  present  spelling  is  adapted  from  the  French 
and  Spanish  spelling,-  the  consonants  being  doubled  to  indicate 
the  short  sound  of  i. 

Mississippi  Bankers  Association.  This  organization  was  formed 
in  1889  and  its  object  was  to  "Promote  the  general  welfare  and 
usefulness  of  banks  and  banking  institutions,  and  to  secure  uni- 
formity of  action,  together  with  the  practical  benefit  to  be  derived 
from  personal  acquaintance  and  from  the  discussion  of  subjects  of 
importance  to  the  banking  and  commercial  interests  of  the  State  of 
Mississippi,  and  especially  in  order  to  secure  the  proper  considera- 
tion of  questions  regarding  the  financial  and  commercial  usages, 
customs  and  laws,  which  affect  the  banking  interests  of  the  entire 
State,  and  for  the  protection  against  loss  by  frauds."  The  associa- 
tion held  its  first  meeting:  on  May  22,  1889,  when  the  following 
were  elected  as  its  first  officers :  Samuel  S.  Carter,  president  of  the 
First  National  Bank  of  Jackson,  president;  W.  A.  Pollock,  presi- 


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MISSISSIPPI  2&5 

dent  of  the  Bank  of  Greenville,  vice-president;  B.  W.  Griffith, 
cashier  of  the  Capital  State  Bank,  Jackson,  secretary  and  treasurer. 
The  names  of  the  organizers,  together  with  the  institutions  repre- 
sented, are :  F.  F.  Becker,  cashier,  Commercial  Bank,  Brookhaven ; 
Lawrence  Foote,  of  Foote  &  Smith,  Canton ;  J.  C.  Smith,  president. 
Bank  of  Crystal  Springs,  Crystal  Springs ;  V.  L.  Terrell,  vice-presi- 
dent, Bank  of  Crystal  Springs,  Crystal  Springs ;  H.  P.  Davis,  pres- 
ident, Bank  of  Durant,  Durant ;  W.  A.  Pollock,  president.  Bank  of 
Greenville,  Greenville;  Thomas  Mount,  cashier,  First  National  Bank, 
Greenville;  J.  Robertshaw,  cashier,  Merchants  &  Planters  Bank, 
Greenville;  J.  W.  McLeod,  cashier.  Merchants  Bank,  Grenada;  I.  N. 
Ellis,  cashier,  Merchants  &  Planters  Bank,  Hazelhurst;  B.  W. 
Griffith,  cashier,  Capital  State  Bank, .  Jackson ;  R.  W.  Millsaps, 
president,  Capital  State  Bank,  Jackson;  S.  S.  Carter,  president. 
First  National  Bank,  Jackson ;  O.  J.  Waite,  cashier.  First  National 
Bank,  Jackson ;  C.  C.  Kelly,  Kosciusko ;  R.  W.  Jones,  Jr.,  cashier. 
Merchants  &  Farmers  Bank,  Macon;  H.  V.  Wall,  First  National 
Bank,  Meridian;  G.  Q.  Hall,  vice-president,  Meridian  National 
Bank,  Meridian;  J.  H.  Wright,  cashier.  Meridian  National  Bank, 
Meridian;  A.  G.  Campbell,  cashier,  First  National  Bank,  Natchez; 
Bem  Price,  cashier,  Bank  of  Oxford,  Oxford ;  W.  D.  Lawson,  pres- 
ident. Bank  of  Pickens,  Pickens ;  R.  A.  Campbell,  Bank  of  Summit, 
Summit;  J.  P.  Roach,  president.  First  National  Bank,  Vicksburg; 
W.  S.  Jones,  cashier.  Merchants  National  Bank,  Vicksburg;  Lee 
Richardson,  president,  Delta  Trust  &  Banking  Co.,  Vicksburg; 
G.  D.  Able,  cashier,  Bank  of  Water  Valley,  Water  Valley ;  T.  M. 
Moseley,  cashier,  First  National  Bank,  West  Point;  J.  C.  Purnell, 
of  Purnell  &  Hawkins,  Winona;  Charles  Roberts,  Bank  of  Yazoo 
City,  Yazoo  City.  The  present  officers  of  the  association  are: 
B.  L.  Roberts,  president ;  J.  W.  Keyes,  vice-president ;  B.  W.  Grif- 
fith, secretary  and  treasurer.  At  the  annual  meetings  addresses, 
in  conformity  to  the  purposes  of  the  association,  are  delivered, 
which  are  published  in  the  annual  reports. 

Mississippi  Battalion,  1809.  December  7,  1808,  in  obedience  to 
the  order  of  the  president  Governor  Williams  ordered  the  organ- 
ization of  a  picked  battalion  of  335  officers  and  men,  to  be  com- 
posed of  infantry  and  riflemen,  chosen  out  of  the  brigade  by 
volunteering  or  otherwise.  High  water  prevented  the  rendezvous 
planned  in  January,  and  it  was  postponed  until  February  15. 
Maj.  Andrew  Marschalk  was  assigned  to  command  by  the  gov- 
ernor. February  17  they  were  ordered  to  be  put  in  marching 
order.  July  6,  1809,  Governor  Holmes,  ordered  the  command  to 
be  disbanded,  in  pursuance  of  orders  from  President  Madison,  who 
expressed  his  thanks  to  the  corps  for  their  readiness  to  answer  a 
call  for  service. 

This  was  part  of  the  military  preparation  for  war  with  France 
or  England,  a  state  of  war  on  the  high  seas  actually  existing. 
For  earlier  battalions,  see  Militia. 

Mississippi  Bubble.  See  Western  Company. 


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256  MISSISSIPPI 

Mississippi  City,  the  former  capital  of  Harrison  county,  was  at 
one  time  one  of  the  important  Gulf  coast  towns,  on  the  Louisville 
&  Nashville  R.  R.,  71  miles  east  of  New  Orleans.  It  has  a  money 
order  postoffice,  an  express  office,  an  excellent  hotel,  several 
churches,  and  private  and  public  schools.  The  fine  beach  here  at- 
tracts many  visitors,  and  the  climate  is  mild  and  salubrious.  Popu- 
lation in  1900,  534;  the  population  in  1906  was  estimated  at  800. 
The  town  seems  to  have  a  prosperous  future  before  it  and  is  both 
a  summer  and  winter  resort  of  note. 

Mississippi  College.  This  fine  old  institution,  one  of  Missis- 
sippi's famous  seats  of  learning,  had  its  origin  in  a  charter  granted 
by  the  legislature  to  Hampstead  Academy,  at  Mount  Salus,  in  1826. 
Next  to  JeflFerson  College,  it  ranks  as  the  oldest  male  college  in  the 
State.  In  1827  the  legislature  changed  its  name  to  *'The  Mississippi 
Academy,"  and,  with  F.  G.  Hopkins  as  its  first  principal,  the  school 
entered  on  its  long  career  of  usefulness.  The  founders  had  a  pur- 
pose in  the  use  of  the  title  "Mississippi,"  and  the  legislature  gave  it 
state  recognition,  donating  it  for  a  term  of  five  years,  to  date  from 
Feb.  25,  1825,  the  income  from  such  portions  of  the  36  sections  of 
land  granted  by  congress  in  1819  for  the  aid  of  an  institution  of 
learning,  as  had  then  been  leased.  In  1829  the  State  loaned  to  the 
academy  $5,000  to  aid  in  completing  the  necessary  buildings,  and 
the  following  year  its  name  and  grade  were  changed  to  that  of 
"Mississippi  College."  It  never  attained  its  ambition,  however,  to 
become  a  State  institution.  Mr.  Elliot,  elected  in  1836,  was  the 
first  president,  while  the  Rev.  Daniel  Comfort,  an  "Old  School" 
Presbyterian,  became  the  first  denominational  president  of  Mis- 
sissippi College  in  1842,  at  which  time  the  citizens  of  Clinton  ceased 
their  attempt  to  manage  the  college  as  a  private  institution,  and 
placed  it  under  the  exclusive  control  of  the  Clinton  Presbytery. 
Augustus  M.  Foote,  Jr.,  of  Jackson,  afterwards  a  well  known 
lawyer,  was  its  first  graduate,  and  the  first  to  receive  a  diploma 
from  a  Mississippi  college;  Robert  Campbell  was  the  first  to  be 
given  the  degree  of  A.  B.  in  1846.  The  institution  remained  under 
Presbyterian  control  for  a  period  of  only  eight  years.  During  this 
time  its  success  was  only  partial.  There  were  three  changes  in  the 
presidency,  and  constant  changes  in  the  teaching  force.  The  patron- 
age was  disappointing,  and  in  1850,  by  resolution,  the  Presbytery 
turned  the  college  over  to  the  citizens  of  Clinton  once  more.  The 
same  year  the  college  with  all  its  franchises,  free  from  debt,  was 
tendered  the  Baptist  State  Convention,  sitting  at  Jackson.  The 
offer  was  accepted  and  it  has  since  been  under  the  control  of  that 
denomination.  While  the  college  was  free  from  debt,  it  was  with- 
out permanent  endowment.  Mr.  I.  N.  Urner  became  principal  of 
the  preparatory  department,  and  subsequently  president  of  the  col- 
lege. When  the  session  opened  in  the  fall  of  1850  under  the  new 
auspices,  there  were  three  teachers  and  84  students.  The  college 
prospered  until  the  outbreak  of  the  war  between  the  States,  at 
which  time  it  boasted  a  faculty  of  six  members,  and  a  student  body 
of  over  200.    A  new  college  chapel  had  been  erected  at  a  cost  of 


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MISSISSIPPI  257 

$30,000,  and  it  enjoyed  a  fair  degree  of  financial  prosperity.  An 
endowment  fund  had  been  subscribed  amounting  to  $102,800,  in  the 
form  of  scholarship  notes  of  $500  each,  and  $40,000  had  been  col- 
lected on  the  notes.  The  institution  was  only  able  to  maintain  the 
appearance  of  an  organization  during  the  war,  and  was  so  badly 
in  debt  at  the  close,  that  it  would  have  been  sold  under  execution, 
save  for  the  efficient  aid  given  by  the  noble  Mrs.  Adelia  M.  Hill- 
man.  At  her  own  expense  she  procured  funds  in  the  North  suf- 
ficient to  place  the  college  once  more  on  its  feet.  Dr.  Walter  Hill- 
man,  President  of  Central  Female  Institute,  -yvas  made  president  of 
the  college  in  1867  and  divided  his  time  for  six  years  between  the 
two  schools.  He  proved  an  excellent  business  administrator,  and 
when  he  was  succeeded  in  1873  by  Dr.  W.  S.  Webb,  the  college 
was  out  of  debt.  The  administration  of  Dr.  Webb  covered  a  period 
of  eighteen  years,  filled  with  "efficient  and  self-sacrificing  effort" 
on  his  part.  Since  1877  the  faculty  of  the  college  "has  worked  on  a 
contingent  basis  and  not  for  guaranteed  salaries."  Before  the 
disastrous  panic  of  1893  came  on,  a  new  endowment  fund  of  $60,000 
was  subscribed ;  of  this  sum,  $40,000  was  collected  and  is  well  in- 
vested, yielding  the  college  a  much  needed  income.  President 
Webb  was  succeeded  by  Dr.  R.  A.  Venable  in  1892.  Dr.  Venable 
was  an  alumnus  of  the  college,  and  one  of  the  ablest  Baptist 
preachers  in  the  South.  His  administration  was  marred  by  an 
attempt  in  1893  to  remove  the  institution  to  Meridian,  and  a  reso- 
lution to  that  end  was  formally  adopted  by  the  Baptist  State  Con- 
vention. Legal  difficulties  fortunately  intervened  and  the  attempt 
was  unsuccessful.  On  Dr.  Venable's  resignation  in  1896,  Dr.  J. 
W.  Provine,  professor  of  natural  science,  was  chosen  his  suc- 
cessor, and  during  his  brief  incumbency  procured  the  erection  of  a 
fine  chemical  laboratory,  made  substantial  improvements  in  the 
buildings  and  grounds,  and  rendered  the  college  self-supporting. 
The  epidemic  of  yellow  fever  in  1897  seriously  reduced  the  at- 
tendance of  the  college  and  impaired  its  finances.  The  appeal  for 
further  financial  aid  was  led  by  Dr.W.T.Lowrey,  an  alumnus  of  the 
college,  and  then  president  of  the  Blue  Mountain  Female  College.  He 
was  prevailed  upon  to  accept  the  presidency  on  the  resignation  of 
Dr.  Provine  in  1898.  Under  Dr.  Lowrey's  able  management  the 
college  has  made  much  material  as  well  as  educational  progress. 
The  number  of  students  has  increased  from  115 — the  low  water 
mark  in  1897-98 — to  between  three  and  four  hundred  at  the  present 
time.  The  standard  has  been  raised  and  the  curriculum  broadened 
and  strengthened;  one  of  the  important  changes  being  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  new  school  of  philosophy,  history  and  economics,  in 
charge  of  the  scholarly  educator  and  writer,  Charles  Hillman 
Brough.  Moreover,  many  permanent  improvements  have  been 
made  in  the  buildings,  including  a  president's  home,  a  preparatory 
hall  and  a  minister's  cottage.  Capt.  RatliflF,  who  was  a  student  in 
1852,  has  been  at  the  head  of  the  executive  board  since  1872. 
Scores  of  the  most  prominent  names  in  Mississippi  have  been  on 
the  rolls  of  the  college  as  students  or  graduates. 

17-11 


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258  MISSISSIPPI 

Mississippi,  French  Claim  to.  The  Memoir  signed  by  Louis 
XIV,  and  his  minister  Colbert,  and  sent  to  Denonville,  Governor- 
General  of  New  France,  is  explanatory  of  the  French  claims  in 
North  America.  Among  other  things  it  recites :  "The  next  year, 
1672,  the  river  Mississippi  and,  at  the  same  time,  the  Illinois, 
Chauanons,  and  other  tribes  unknown  to  Europeans,  were  discov- 
ered by  Sieur  Joliet,  and  the  Jesuit  Father  Marquette,  who  went 
as  far  as  the  thirty-second  degree,  and  set  up  the  King's  arms^ 
taking  possession  in  his  name  of  all  those  recently  discovered  na- 
tions. And  some  years  after,  Sieur  de  La  Salle  extended  the 
same  discovery  farther,  even  unto  the  sea,  taking  everywhere  pos- 
session by  the  King's  arms,  which  he  erected  there.  All  the  fore- 
going demonstrates  sufficiently  the  incontestable  right  the  French 
have  to  the  Iroquois  lands  .  .  .  and  it  demonstrates  their 
possession  of  the  great  river  Mississippi,  which  they  have  discov- 
ered as  far  as  the  South  Sea,  on  which  river  also  they  have  divers 
establishments,  as  well  as  on  that  of  Ohio,  Ouabache,  etc.,  which 
flow  into  the  said  river  Mississippi,  and  of  the  countries  and  lands 
in  the  vicinity  of  said  rivers,  where  they  actually  carry  on  trade, 
which  countries  are  easily  recognized  on  the  general  map  of 
North  America." 

Mississippi  Press  Association.  The  press  of  Mississippi  has  ever 
been  a  potent  and  uplifting  influence  in  the  affairs  of  the  common- 
wealth. Its  editors  and  publishers  have  been  men  of  virility,  enter- 
prise and  ability,  and  in  the  long  roll  of  those  honored  in  the  annals 
of  the  State  appear  many  names  closely  identified  with  the  history 
of  the  press.  In  the  year  1802,  Andrew  Marschalk,  pioneer  soldier- 
editor  and  publisher,  established  the  Natchez  Gazette,  the  first 
newspaper  published  in  Mississippi  Territory.  He  was  endowed 
with  energy  and  enterprise,  and  had  for  his  equipment  a  wooden 
hand  printing  press  of  domestic  manufacture.  From  this  humble 
beginning,  the  history  of  the  press  shows  a  steady  development  in 
power  and  influence,  only  interrupted  by  the  years  of  strife  and  suf- 
fering marked  by  the  war  between  the  States.  With  the  close  of 
the  conflict  came  a  remarkable  revival  of  journalistic  enterprise ;  a 
host  of  new  and  ably  conducted  newspapers  sprang  into  existence, 
which  strove  mightily  in  the  cause  of  white  supremacy  and  the 
restoration  of  Mississippi  to  Mississippians.  It  was  at  this  period 
of  time  that  the  Mississippi  Press  association  had  its  origin — in 
May,  1865.  The  expressed  object  of  the  association  was  to  promote 
the  mutual  benefit  of  the  members  of  the  newspaper  fraternity  of 
the  State.  The  association  held  its  first  meeting  in  May,  1866.  It 
has  never  been  chartered.  On  the  rolls  of  the  founders  of  the 
organization  are  the  well  known  names  of  Col.  J.  L.  Power,  P.  K, 
Mayers,  J.  S.  Hamilton,  A.  J.  Frantz,  J.  J.  Shannon,  J.  M.  Partridge,. 
B.  W.  Kinsley,  F.  T.  Cooper  and  E.  M.  Yerger.  The  first  meeting 
of  the  association  was  held  at  the  statehouse  in  Jackson,  and  the 
following  officers  were  chosen :  J.  M.  Partridge,  of  the  Vicksburg 
Herald,    president;   J.    L.    Power,   of   the   Jackson    Clarion    and 


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MISSISSIPPI  259 

Standard,  secretary;  P.  K.  Mayers,  of  the  Handsboro  Democrat, 
treasurer.  In  addition  to  the  officers,  the  following  gentlemen  were 
present  at  this  first  meeting:  J.  J.  Shannon,  Jones  S.  Hamiltoh  and 
B.  F.  Jones  of  the  Jackson  Clarion  and  Standard;  E.  M.  Yerger,  of 
the  Jackson  Mississippian;  A.  N.  Kimball  and  H.  M.  Aikin,  of  the 
Christian  Watchman;  A.  J.  Frantz,  of  the  Brandon  Republican; 
Jere  Gibson,  of  the  Meridian  Tropic ;  J.  M.  Swords,  of  the  Vicks- 
burg  Herald;  T.  B.  Manlove,  of  the  Vicksburg  Journal;  J.  D. 
Houston,  of  the  Lexington  Advertiser;  Singleton  Garrett,  of  the 
Canton  Mail ;  S.  W.  Dale,  of  the  Brookhaven  Journal ;  M.  S.  Ward, 
of  the  Panola  Star;  J.  F.  Mead,  of  the  Natchez  Democrat,  and  J. 
L.  McCuUum  and  F.  T.  Cooper,  of  the  Mississippi  Conservative. 
Since  1874  the  meetings  of  the  association  have  been  held  regularly, 
and  its  transactions  haye  been  published  under  the  title,  "Proceed- 
ings of  the  Mississippi  Press  Association."  The  officers  of  the. 
association  are :  J.  D.  McKie,  of  the  Review,  Biloxi,  president ;  J.  T. 
Senter,  of  the  Vicksburg  American,  first  vice-president ;  R.  B.  May, 
of  the  Enterprise,  McComb,  second  vice-president;  P.  K.  Mayers, 
of  the  Democrat-Star,  Scranton,  treasurer;  J.  G.  McGuire,  of  the 
Herald,  Yazoo  City,  secretary,  and  J.  L.  Power,  chaplain. 

Mississippi  Rifles.  This  was  the  popular  name  of  the  First  reg- 
ment  Mississippi  infantry,  in  the  service  of  the  United  States  for 
the  Mexican  War  (q.  v.).  Governor  Brown  called  for  volunteer 
companies  for  this  regiment  June  1,  1846. 

There  was  great  pressure  from  companies  in  all  parts  of  the 
State  for  enrollment,  and  the  governor  endeavored  to  gratify  those 
that  were  first  completely  organized  and  filled.  The  list  as  mus- 
tered in  was  as  follows: 

Company  A,  Yazoo  Volunteers,  Capt.  J.  M.  Sharp ;  Company  B, 
Wilkinson  Volunteers,  Capt.  Douglas  H.  Cooper;  Company  C, 
Warren  county,  Capt.  John  Willis;  Cqmpany  D,  Carroll  county, 
Capt.  Bainbridge  D.  Howard;  Company  E,  Hihds  county,  Capt. 
John  L.  McManus;  Company  F,  Lafayette  county,  Capt.  William 
DeLay;  Company  G,  Hinds  county,  Capt.  Reuben  N.  Downing; 
Company  H,  Warren  county,  Capt.  George  P.  Crump;  Company 
I,  Marshall  Guards,  Capt.  A.  B.  Bradford,  succeeded  by  James 
H.  R.  Taylor;  Company  K,  the  Tombigbee  company,  Capt.  A.  K. 
McClung,  succeeded  by  William  P.  Rogers. 

The  Hinds  county  companies  were  the  State  Fencibles  (of 
Jackson)  and  Raymond  Fencibles;  the  Vicksburg  companies  were 
the  Southrons  and  Volunteers.  A  full  roster  of  the  regiment  is 
given  in  Goodspeed's  Memoirs  of  Miss.,  I,  140. 

At  the  rendezvous,  Camp  Brown,  near  Vicksburg,  officers  were 
elected  about  the  middle  of  June :  Jefferson  Davis,  colonel ;  Alex- 
ander K.  McClung,  lieutenant-colonel;  Alexander  B.  Bradford, 
major.  McClung  commanded  the  regiment  while  it  remained  at 
Vicksburg.  The  staff  officers  were:  Richard  Griffith,  adjutant; 
Seymour  Halsey,  surgeon;  John  Thompson,  assistant  surgeon; 
Charles  T.   Harlan,  sergeant-major;  S.  Warren  White,   quarter- 


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260  MISSISSIPPI 

master  sergeant;  Kemp  S.  Holland,  commissary;  Stephen  Dodds, 
principal  musician. 

About  this  time  young  Cadmus  M.  Wilcox,  then  a  cadet  at  West 
Point,  visited  Washington  and,  calling  upon  Davis,  asked 
if  he  would  become  colonel  of  the  Mississippi  regiment. 
"He  replied  it  was  true  he  had  been  elected  colonel  and 
that  he  would  accept  if  he  could  have  the  men  armed  with  rifles. 
On  being  asked  why  his  acceptance  should  be  contingent  upon 
the  weapon  with  which  the  regiment  might  be  armed,  he  remarked 
if  armed  with  the  ordinary  infantry  musket  it  would  be  but  one 
of  many  regiments  similarly  armed;  but  if  with  the  rifle,  besides 
being  more  effective,  there  would  probably  be  no  other  body  of 
men  so  armed,  and  it  would  be  known  and  referred  to  as  the  Mis- 
sissippi Rifles,  and,  consequently,  would  be  more  conspicuous.  It 
was  armed  as  he  desired ;  he  accepted  the  colonelcy  and  it  became 
well  known  and  is  referred  to  as  the  Mississippi  Rifles  prominently 
in  the  histories  of  the  Mexican  war."  (Wilcox,  History  of  the 
Mexican  War.) 

"Jefferson  Davis  was  then  a  member  of  Congress,  but  had  prom- 
ised to  serve  as  colonel  of  a  regiment  whenever  elected.  It  was 
known  that  he  had  graduated  at  West  Point,  and  seen  some  serv- 
ice in  the  West.  At  the  same  election  that  made  him  colonel  of 
the  First  Mississippi  regiment,  A.  K.  McClung  was  made  lieuten- 
ant-colonel, and  Alexander  Bradford,  a  major-general  of  militia, 
major.  No  new  troops  were  better  officered,  and  the  regiment 
went  to  the  field  as  gayly  as  if  they  had  been  called  to  a  dance." 
(Reuben  Davis.)  In  the  ranks  were  representatives  of  the  best 
families  of  the  State.    One  of  the  privates  was  James  Z.  George. 

Davis  returned  to  his  home  by  way  of  Wheeling,  and  joined 
the  regiment  near  New  Orleans,  July  21,  1846.  At  this  encamp- 
ment they  received  the  rifles,  shipped  from  the  east.  "It  may  be 
interesting  to  state,  said  Mr.  Davis  in  1889,  that  Gen.  Scott  en- 
deavored to  persuade  me  not  to  take  more  rifles  than  enough  for 
four  companies,  and  objected  particularly  to  percussion  arms  as 
not  having  been  sufficiently  tested  for  the  use  of  troops  in  the 
field.  Knowing  that  the,  Mississippians  would  have  no  confidence 
in  the  old  flint-lock  muskets,  I  insisted  on  their  being  armed  with 
the  kind  of  rifle  then  recently  made  at  New  Haven,  Conn.,  the 
Whitney  rifle.  From  having  been  first  used  by  the  Mississipians, 
those  rifles  have  always  been  known  as  the  Mississippi  rifles." 
(Memoir  by  his  Wife.)  These  rifles  had  no  bayonets,  as  there  had 
not  been  time  to  have  them  made.  Concerning  the  service  of  the 
regiment,  see  Mexican  War,  Monterey,  and  Bnena  Vista. 

Mississippi  River.  The  importance  of  the  Mississippi  river  in 
connection  with  the  history  and  development  of  the  State  of  Mis- 
sissippi scarcely  needs  mention.  For  upward  of  500  miles,  follow- 
ing the  sinuosities  of  the  stream,  it  forms  the  western  boundary 
of  the  State,  and  on  its  broad  bosom,  ascending  and  descending, 
floated  the  first  explorers  and  settlers,  who  made  possible  the  be- 
ginnings of  the  State.    Along  its  banks  and  in  the  vicinity  of  its 


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tributary  streams  occurred  the  first  permanent  white  settlements. 
Before  the  days  of  overland  travel  and  even  down  to  the  era  of 
the  railroads,. it  constituted  the  great  liquid  highway  for  the  travel 
and  commerce  of  the  St;ate.  It  forms  the  great  boundary  line  be- 
tween the  eastern  and  western  States  and  gives  commercial 
entrance  to  the  very  heart  of  the  United  States.  Since  1803  it  has 
been  in  the  undisputed  possession  of  this  country. 

Its  gjeat  length,  taken  in  connection  with  the  number  and  char- 
acter of  its  tributaries,  the  total  area  drained,  the  immense  system 
of  internal  navigation  aflforded,  and  the  population  contiguous  to 
its  banks,  renders  it  one  of  the  most  striking  topographical  feat- 
ures of  the  earth.  Together  with  its  subordinate  basins  the  Mis- 
sissippi Valley  comprises  an  area  of  2,455,000  square  miles, 
extending  through  30  degrees  of  longitude  and  23  degrees  of  lati- 
tude. (The  Mississippi  River,  J.  W.  Foster.)  Humphreys  and 
Abbot,  "Physics  and  Hydraulics  of  the  Mississippi  River"  g^ve 
the  following  table  of  data  for  the  area,  elevation,  drainage,  etc., 
of  its  several  subordinate  basins: 


Distance 

from 

mouth. 


Height 

above 

sea, 

feet. 

1,680 

6,800 

1,649 

10,000 

2,450 

210 
1,150 

416 


Width 

at 

mouth, 

feet. 

5,000 

3,000 

3,000 

1,500 

800 

850 

700 

2,470 


Down- 
fall of 
rain, 
inches. 

35.2 
20.9 
41.5 
29.3 
39.0 
46.3 
41.1 
30.4 


Mean  dis- 
charge 
per  second, 
cu.  feet. 

105,000 

120,000 

158,000 

63,000 

57.000 

43,000 

31,000 

675,000 


Area  of 
basin. 

square 
miles. 

169,000 

518,000 

214,000 

189,000 

97,000 

13,850 

10,500 

1,244,000 


Upper    Mississippi . .  1,330 

Missouri    2,908 

Ohio   1,265 

Arkansas   1,514 

Red  River 1,200 

Yazoo 500 

St.  Francis   380 

Lower   Mississippi . .  1,286 

The  lengths  of  the  different  grand  tributaries  as  given  by  Jen- 
kins are  as  follows: 

Missouri .2,908  miles — distance  from  mouth  to  source. 

Upper  Mississippi 1,330  miles — distance  from  mouth  to  source. 

Ohio   1,276  miles — distance  from  mouth  to  source. 

Arkansas   1,514  miles — distance  from  mouth  to  source. 

Red  1,212  miles — distance  from  mouth  to  source. 

Lower    Mississippi 1,286  miles — distance  from  mouth  to  source. 

The  combined  lengths  are: 

Lower  Mississippi  and  Missouri 4,194  miles. 

Lower  and  upper  Mississippi 2,615  miles. 

Gulf  of  Mexico  to  source  of  Ohio 2,373  miles. 

Gulf  of  Mexico  to  source  of  Arkansas 2,209  miles. 

Gulf  of  Mexico  to  source  of  Red 1,520  miles. 

The  character  of  the  lower  Mississippi  has  thus  been  described 
by  an  eminent  authority :  "At  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri,  the  Mis- 
sissippi first  assumes  its  characteristic  appearance  of  a  turbid  and 
boiling  torrent,  immense  in  volume  and  force.  From  that  point,  its 
waters  pursue  their  devious  way  for  more  than   1,306  miles,  de- 


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262  MISSISSIPPI 

stroying  banks  and  islands  at  one  locality,  reconstructing  them 
at  another,  absorbing  tributary  after  tributary,  without  visible  in- 
crease in  size, — until,  at  length,  it  is  in  turn  absorbed  in  the  great 
volume  of  the  Gulf."     (Humphreys  and  Abbot.) 

When  in  flood,  the  river,  unprotected  by  levees,  extended  to  a 
width  of  thirty  miles,  and  the  surplus  waters  found  their  way  to 
the  ocean  through  deep  forests  and  almost  interminable  swamps. 
As  the  waters  receded,  there  was  left  behind,  on  the  bottom  lands, 
a  sediment  as  fine  and  as  fertilizing  as  the  Nile  mud.  As  a  result 
of  these  long  recurring  annual  overflows,  there  is  a  wide  belt  of 
Recent  Alluvium  bordering  the  Mississippi  from  the  mouth  of  the 
Ohio  to  the  Gulf.  The  greatest  width  of  this  belt  is  at  Napoleon, 
where  it  is  nearly  75  miles  wide;  its  greatest  contraction  is  at 
Natchez  and  Helena,  where  the  width  is  only  25  miles.  The  area 
of  the  tract  above  the  delta  is  19,450  square  miles.  Of  this  area, 
-6,650  square  miles  are  embraced  in  the  Yazoo  basin  of  Mississippi, 
and  278  square  miles  in  the  basin  of  the  Hombchitto.  The  allu- 
vial deposit  at  Cairo  is  about  25  feet  thick,  and  about  35  feet  in  the 
Yazoo  belt,  and  this  thickness  is  maintained  as  far  down  as  Baton 
Rouge.  Borings  at  New  Orleans  indicate  a  thickness  there  of  40 
feet, 

A  feature  of  the  river,  which  has  been  often  remarked  upon,  is, 
that  its  width  is  not  increased  by  the  absorption  of  any  tributary, 
however  large:  thus,  at  Rock  Island,  nearly  1,800  miles  from  its 
mouth,  it  is  5,000  feet  wide,  while  at  New  Orleans,  and  where  it 
enters  the  Gulf,  swollen  by  the  volumes  of  the  Missouri,  Ohio,  Ar- 
kansas, Yazoo  and  Red  rivers,  it  is  dwarfed  to  2,470  feet.  (Hum- 
phreys and  Abbot.)  Jenkins  is  authority  for  the  following  data 
on  the  dimensions  of  the  great  river:  Its  breadth  from  Cairo  to 
Helena,  Ark.,  is  over  a  mile,  or  from  5,875  feet  to  5,282  feet.  From 
Helena,  Ark.,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Red  river,  it  is  less  than  a  mile 
wide,  or  from  4,758  feet  to  4,030  feet  in  width.  •  From  Red  river  to 
Baton  Rouge  it  is  3,260  feet  in  width,  and  from  Baton  Rouge  to 
the  head  of  the  Passes,  it  is  a  little  less  than  half  a  mile  wide,  or 
from  2,628  feet  to  2,605  feet,  thus  gradually  decreasing  in  width 
as  it  flows  to  fhe  sea. 

While  the  width  of  the  river  decreases  as  we  descend  the  stream, 
the  converse  is  true  in  relation  to  the  depth,  which  decreases  as  we 
ascend  the  stream.  The  greatest  depth  is  about  117  feet  between 
Baton  Rougfe  and  New  Orleans,  and  114  and  J^  feet  between  Red 
River  and  Baton  Rouge. 

Red  river  to  Natchez,  101  feet; 

Natchez  to  Vicksburg,  92  feet; 

Vicksburg  to  Helena,  84  feet ; 

Helena  to  Memphis,  63  feet;  Memphis  to  Cairo,  72  feet,  (ave- 
rage). 

Computations  show  that  while  there  is  considerable  variation 
in  the  breadth  and  depth  of  the  river,  that  is,  decreasing  in  width 
and  increasing  in  depth  as  it  flows  to  the  sea,  the  cross  section 
varies  but  slightly,  the  average  cross  section,  from  Cairo  to  New 


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MISSISSIPPI  263 

Orleans,  being  a  little  over  200,000  square  feet.  (A  tabulated  state- 
ment of  the  dimensions  of  the  river,  and  the  volume  of  its  discharge 
in  cubic  feet  per  second,  during  high  and  low  water,  will  be  found 
in  Jenkins  monograph  on  the  Mississippi  River,  vol.  6,  Of  the  Miss. 
Historical  Society  Publications.)  On  the  Mississippi  front  of  this 
State,  the  river  has  an  average  width  of  4,712  feet,  an  average  depth 
of  51.5  feet  and  an  avisrage  cross-section  of  198,957  square  feet, 
a  powerful  stream  which  is  difficult  to  control  in  times  of  flood. 
Moreover,  the  same  authority  advances  the  claim  that  the  great- 
est force  of  the  flood  waters  is  met  with  at  Helena  in  the  shape  of 
Crowley's  ridge,  and  that  they  have  a  tendency  to  seek  an  outlet 
on  the  opposite  shore  at  Montezuma  bend  or  the  Yazoo  Pass,  which 
he  calls  "our  weakest  point."  Here  the  river  is  only  27  miles 
wide,  "practically  a  gorge,  and  on  account  of  the  deflection  which 
the  flood-waters  receive  when  striking  Crowley's  ridge,  the  strength 
of  the  current  is  thrown  against  the  opposite  shore  at  about  the 
mouth  of  the  Yazoo  Pass,  and  if  allowed  to  have  its  own  way  the 
natural  course  of  the  river  would  be  down  the  Yazoo  river  where  it 
undoubtedly  flowed  at  one  time,  between  the  narrow  ridge  and  the 
high  lands."  Moreover,  "the  discharge  is  greatest  (at  Helena), 
being  1,848,000  cubic  feet  per  second  and  the  oscillation,  or  diflfer- 
ence  between  high  and  low  water,  over  50  feet."  As  a  consequence, 
the  best  levee  protection  is  demanded  at  this  point.    (See  Levees). 

The  fall  of  the  lower  Mississippi  is  about  32/100  of  a  foot  per 
mile.  From  the  Gulf  to  Red  river,  a  distance  of  311  miles,  the 
elevation  of  the  low  water  surface  above  sea  level  is  only  3  feet, 
from  Red  river  to  Lake  Providence,  distance  211  miles,  the  rise  is 
66.8  feet  and  from  Lake  Providence  to  Memphis,  distance  312  miles, 
rise  111.9  feet. 

The  course  of  the  river  is  in  a  series  of  curves,  from  ten  to  twelve 
miles  in  diameter,  sweeping  around  with  great  uniformity,  until 
it  returns  to  a  point  very  near  the  one  from  which  it  was  deflected. 
The  current  continually  encroaches  on  the  alluvial  banks,  until 
finally,  during  high  flood,  a  crevasse  occurs,  when  nearly  the  whole 
volume  of  water  rushes  through  the  newly  formed  channel,  known 
as  a  "cut  oflF."  The  result  of  this  action  is  seen  in  numerous  cres- 
cent-shaped or  "ox-bow"  lakes  which  owe  their  origin  to  this  cause. 
Sandbars  accumulate  at  the  mouth  of  the  ancient  channels,  on 
which  rushes  first  take  root,  and  subsequently  cotton-wood,  thus 
forming  lakes,  isolated  from  the  river,  except  in  time  of  flood. 
This  universal  tendency  of  all  swift  rivers  to  assume  the  "serpen- 
tine" or  "S"  shape,  has  been  everyivhere  noted,  and  is  well  illus- 
trated in  the  lower  reaches  of  the  Mississippi,  from  Cairo  to  New 
Orleans.  It  is  nowhere  rock-bound  in  its  lower  course,  and  its  soft, 
sandy  banks  yield  readily  to  the  excavating  power  of  the  swift 
current.  The  main  channel,  and  hence  the  fastest  current,  shows 
the  well  known  displacement  toward  the  outward  bank  of  the 
curve;  its  closeness  to  the  bank  depending  ui>on  the  strength  of 
curvature  of  the  particular  turn.  One  of  the  most  perfect  mean- 
ders is  at  Rowdy  Bend,  above  Greenville,  Miss.,  where  the  channel 


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264  MISSISSIPPI 

within  a  few  hundred  feet  of  the  bank,  or  about  one-eighth  of  the 
width  of  the  stream  at  that  point.  As  a  result  of  this  constant 
erosion  of  the  banks,  when  unprotected  by  revetments,  marked 
changes  have  taken  place  in  the  course  of  the  mighty  river.  Many 
now  living,  have  been  witnesses  to  some  of  these  changes.  A  strik- 
ing example  is  seen  at  Raleigh  Landing,  about  fifteen  miles  above 
Vicksburg,  Miss.,  which  in  twelve  years  was  forced  back  over  a 
mile.  Among  less  marked  examples  may  be  mentioned  Rivers, 
Avalanche,  Lee's  and  Ship  Bayou  Landings,  near  Natchez,  Miss., 
all  of  which  have  been  moved  back  half  a  mile  or  more.  Fort 
Adams,  Grand  Gulf,  St.  Joseph,  La.,  are  victims  of  the  same  pro- 
cesses. The  erosion  of  one  bank  is  accompanied  by  filling  along 
the  other,  so  that  the  width  of  the  river  remains  fairly  constant. 
As  we  have  seen,  the  stronger  the  curve,  the  greater  the  displace- 
ment of  the  swift  current,  and  the  more  sluggish  the  water  along 
the  inner  bank,  and  the  greater  the  amount  of  deposition,  resulting 
finally  in  a  cut-off,  when  the  river  cuts  through  the  neck  of  a  lobe 
or  spur,  and  takes  a  shorter  path.  The  river  ends  of  the  old  mean- 
der become  silted  up  and  "ox-bow"  lakes  are  formed.  One  of  the 
largest  cut-off  meanders  is  at  Davis's  cut-off.  Palmyra  Lake,  just 
south  of  Vicksburg.  Other  examples  may  be  seen  at  many  points 
along  the  course  of  the  river.  "It  has  been  reported  recently  that 
the  down  valley  migration  of  the  curve  above  Sargent's  point,  be- 
low Vicksburg,  has  allowed  the  river  to  cut  through  the  neck  and 
return  to  its  former  course,  long  known  as  Lake  Palmyra.  By  this 
change  several  cotton  plantations  were  practically  ruined,  Davis 
Island  was  restored  to  the  Mississippi  mainland,  and  further  growth 
of  the  meander  below  Davis's  cut-off  was  probably  stopped."  (Bul- 
letin 36,  p.  598,  American  Geog.  Soc.) 

It  is  probable  that  the  Mississippi  river  has  always  been  within 
a  few  miles  of  its  present  general  location.  According  to  Jenkins, 
"it  may,  however,  after  passing  the  hills  at  Memphis,  have  made 
its  channel  down  and  through  Horn  Lakes  and  Horn  Lake  creek 
into  the  Yazoo  river.  Thence  skirting  the  foot-hills  to  Walnut 
Hills,  it  was  deflected  by  the  line  of  bluffs  in  a  southwesterly  direc- 
tion to  the  31st  parallel,  where  it  swept  around  to  the  southeast,  if 
it  did  not  find  a  shorter  route  to  the  sea  by  the  way  of  the  Atchafal- 
aya,  or  even  empty. its  muddy  waters  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  at 
that  point:  for  the  Mississippi  river  from  its  present  mouth  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Red  river,  is  an  estuary,  or  arm,  of  the  sea." 

The  area  of  the  delta,  assuming  that  it  begins  where  the  river 
sends  off  its  first  branch  to  the  sea — ^viz.,  at  the  head  of  Bayou 
Atchafalaya — is  estimated  at  12,300  square  miles.  This  would  be 
at  the  mouth  of  Red  river,  latitude  31  degrees,  while  the  mouth  of 
the  Great  River  is  now  in  latitude  29  degrees;  thus  extending 
through  two  degrees  of  space.  (The  Mississippi  Valley,  Foster.) 
The  same  authority  computes  the  age  of  the  delta  at  4,400  years, 
on  the  assumption  that  the  river  advances  into  the  Gulf  at  the  rate 
of  262  feet  per  annum — the  distance  from  its  present  mouth  to  its 
supposed  original  mouth  being  given  as  220  miles.    The  same  emi- 


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MISSISSIPPI  265 

nent  geologist  estimates  that  the  Mississippi  must  have  been  a  delta- 
forming  river  at  an  earlier  period,  as  is  evidenced  by  the  Loess  for- 
mation which  occurs  along  its  banks,  and  which,  at  Natchez,  attains 
a  thickness  of  sixty  feet. 

The  amount  of  sediment  held  in  suspension  by  the  river  is  enor- 
mous, and  as  determined  by  numerous  experiments,  is,  by  weight 
nearly  as  1  to  1.500 ;  and  by  bulk,  nearly  as  1  to  2.900.  The  mean 
annual  discharge  of  water  is  assumed  at  19,500,000,000,000  cubic 
feet;  hence  it  follows  that  812,500,000,000  pounds  of  sedimentary 
matter — equal  to  one  square  mile  of  deposit,  241  feet  in  depth — 
are  yearly  transported,  in  a  state  of  suspension,  into  the  Gulf. 
(Humphreys  and  Abbot,  "Physics  of  the  Mississippi.") 

Mississippi  Soimd,  Naval  E^ngagements,  1814.  Commodore  Dan- 
iel T.  Patterson  had  been  in  command,  from  near  the  beginning  of 
the  war,  of  what  there  was  of  the  United  States  navy  on  the  New 
Orleans  station.  The  insignificance  of  the  naval  force  anywhere 
was  the  main  cause  of  the  humiliation  of  America.  In  1812  there 
had  been  begun  the  building  of  a  flat-bottomed  frigate,  or  gunboat, 
in  Lake  Pontchartrain,  to  carry  forty-two  cannon,  but  the  con- 
struction had  been  suspended,  despite  the  protests  of  Patterson  and 
Claiborne.  Patterson  had  a  few  gunboats  when  the  time  of  need  ar- 
rived, a  mere  shadow  of  naval  strength  compared  to  the  British  arm- 
ament. A  letter  was  sent  him  from  Pensacola,  December  5,  announc- 
ing the  arrival  there  of  a  British  fleet  of  sixty  sail,  men  of  war  and 
transports  of  an  army  for  the  capture  of  New  Orleans.  Gen.  Jackson 
was  already  in  the  city  beginning  his  preparations  for  defense. 
Patterson,  for  his  part,  did  what  he  could  to  thwart  or  at  least 
watch  the  hostile  movements.  He  sent  five  gunboats,  a  tender 
and  despatch  boat,  toward  "the  passes  Mariana  and  Christiana," 
under  the  command  of  Thomas  Catesby  Jones,  with  orders  to  make 
a  last  stand  at  the  Rigolets  and  sink  the  enemy  or  be  sunk.  Lieu- 
tenant Jones  detached  two  gunboats,  under  McKeever  and  Ulrick, 
to  go  as  far  as  Dauphine  island,  where  they  espied  one  or  more  of 
the  British  advance  scouts,  the  Seahorse,  Armide  and  Sophie. 
Vice  Admiral  Cochrane,  commanding  the  British  expedition,  re- 
ported (from  the  Armide,  off  Cat  island,  Dec.  15)  that  the  two  gun- 
boats fired  upon  the  Armide.  But  they  could  not  have  sustained 
an  action,  and  turned  about  and  joined  the  other  three  gunboats 
off  Biloxi.  As  Cochrane  intended  to  anchor  at  Isle  au  Vaisseau 
(Ship  Island),  and  send  the  troops  in  small  boats  to  land  at  the 
Bayone  Catalan  (or  des  Pecheurs)  at  the  head  of  Lake  Borgne, 
"it  became  impossible,"  he  said,  "that  any  movement  of  the  troops 
could  take  place  till  this  formidable  flotilla  was  either  captured  or 
destroyed."  Rear-admiral  Malcolm  came  up,  with  the  fleet,  on  the 
11th,  and  anchored  between  Cat  and  Ship  islands,  and  Jones  retired 
to  pass  Mariana,  and  next  day,  oflf  Bay  St.  Louis,  obeying  orders 
to  avoid  being  cut  off  from  the  Rigolets.  Cochrane,  on  the  12th, 
put  "the  launches,  barges  and  pinnaces  of  the  squadron,"  under  the 
command  of  Captain  Lockyer,  of  the  Sophie,  aided  by  Captains 
Montressor  and  Roberts,  against  Jones,  who  then  determined  to 


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266  MISSISSIPPI 

take  station  near  the  Malheureux  islands.  About  2  p.  m.,  on  the 
13th,  the  British  boats  were  at  Pass  Christian.  The  water  was  so 
low  because  of  westerly  wind,  that  three  of  the  gunboats  could 
not  be  got  afloat,  even  by  throwing  overboard  all  that  could  be 
spared,  until  flood  tide  at  3 :30.  Three  of  the  British  boats  entered 
bay  St.  Louis,  to  cut  off  the  schooner  Seahorse,  that  Jones  had  sent 
in  to  remove  the  stores  deposited  there.  A  few  shots  drove  the 
barges  out  of  range,  but  they  were  reinforced  by  four  others,  and 
the  attack  renewed.  Sailing-master  Johnson,  of  the  Seahorse,  was 
supported  in  the  fight  by  a  shore  battery  of  two  6-pounders,  and 
after  a  sharp  action  of  30  minutes,  the  enemy  drew  off,  with  one 
boat  damaged  and  several  men  killed  or  wounded.  But  it  was 
necessary,  at  7:30,  to  blow  up  the  schooner,  and  burn  the  public 
store  house.  Early  in  the  morning  of  the  14th  Jones  was  com- 
pelled by  a  failure  of  wind  to  drop  anchor  "in  the  west  end  of  the 
Malheureux  island  passage."  At  daylight  the  calm  continued,  and 
the  British  rowboats,  anchored  about  nine  miles  distant,  prepared 
to  advance.  Jones  called  his  subordinates  on  board  his  flagship, 
gunboat  No.  156,  and  gave  orders.  The  boats  took  position  in  a 
close  line  across  the  channel,  anchored  by  the  stern  with  springs  on 
the  cable,  against  the  strong  curren  of  ebb  tide.  "Thus  we  re- 
mained," he  wrote  in  his  report,  "anxiously  awaiting  an  attack 
from  the  advancing  foe,  whose  force  I  now  clearly  distinguished  to 
be  42  heavy  launches  and  gun-barges,  with  three  light  g^gs,  manned 
with,  upwards  of  one  thousand  men  and  officers."  He  had,  as  stated, 
five  gunboats,  with  23  guns  and  182  men,  under  the  command  of 
Lieutenants  John  D.  Ferris,  Isaac  McKeever,  Thomas  A.  C.  Jones, 
Robert  Spedden  and  George  Ulrick.  The  sloop  Alligator,  1  gun 
and  8  men,  under  Master  R.  S.  Shepperd,  was  two  miles  away  to 
the  southwest,  held  by  the  calm.  This  boat  was  first  captured  by 
a  detachment  of  Lockyer's  boats,  after  which  the  attacking  force 
was  united.  "At  10 :30,"  says  Jones,  "the  enemy  weighed,  forming 
a  line  abreast  in  open  order,  and  steering  direct  for  our  line,  which 
was  unfortunately  in  some  degree  broken  by  the  force  of  the  cur- 
rent, driving  Nos.  156  and  163  about  100  yards  in  advance.  As  soon 
as  the  enemy  came  within  reach  of  our  shot,  a  deliberate  fire  from 
our  long  g